


Coffee & Flowers

by Shescella



Category: Final Fantasy VII (Video Game 1997), Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020)
Genre: Coffee Shops, F/M, Flowers, Fluff and Angst, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-15
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:01:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 76,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24734320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shescella/pseuds/Shescella
Summary: There were many things that went wrong the moment he accepted that yellow lily. One was the way his already-messed up schedule got even messier, and another was how he absolutely had no control over his life anymore, but the worst part of it all was that Cloud was supposed to help Zack get the girl, not fall in love with her. Alas, the bro-code never seemed so fragile before.
Relationships: Aerith Gainsborough/Cloud Strife
Comments: 232
Kudos: 468





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! As from the summary, welcome to this AU mess I'd like to call my second Clerith multi-chaptered fic. For those who are big fans of INE (my other clerith story), this story came to be because of the false promise I gave to my early readers about how INE was supposed to be lighthearted and fluffy. Guys, I have come to write this story to redeem myself LOOOL (since INE is coming to a close). Taking a break from the OG timeline for a bit, I present to you this college-based fic that will hopefully bring smiles, warmth, and a little bit of angst into all of your guys' hearts xDDDDDDD Hopefully I don't disappoint.
> 
> As always, leave a review to let me know what you guys think of this new fic! Because haha, it's time for the insecurities again that come with a new story :) Without further ado, here's to a new fic!
> 
> P.S. updates for this fic will be relatively slow because I am working on the last two chapters of INE, but the moment it finishes, I will pick this one up ASAP! Stay tuned!

Cloud Strife was not happy with the second cup of coffee he had downed in less than thirty minutes in the library for a variety of reasons.

The first was that he was now horribly caffeinated. He had his first cup of coffee two hours ago, so stacking it up with another cup so soon made his chest all fluttery and muscles all jittery like some hyperactive kid who got fed too much chocolate mixed with some caramel.

The second was that the asshole who made this second cup—he wished he had paid attention to the guy's face so that he could forever blacklist him—somehow screwed up the filtering, so he drank remnants of actual grinds of the coffee beans with every gulp he took. It was delicious, really, the feeling eerily similar to sand just running down his throat, scratching every corner and crevice it could before it finally admitted defeat and sank into his stomach. Truly delicious—delicious enough to warrant an official complaint.

The third was that the coffee was _not_ doing its job, hence the purchase of the second cup and the revelation that he was _not_ going to finish this report on time. He would probably have to whip up an eleven-page report along with an apology email just to ask for an extension within the next twenty-four hours. For a cup of coffee that the cashier assured had two shots of expresso, it could have triple the amount, and it'd probably have the same effect because he got _scammed._

The fourth was that even though the coffee was not doing its first job of keeping him awake, it would eventually do its second in giving him a good ol' knockout, aka the sweet consequences of a caffeine crash that followed every intake of coffee. He didn't know how it did it, honestly—how it made him more incapable of doing work rather than boosting him with that extra energy to outdo the performance of the average human just for a couple of more hours.

The last was that he was doomed, and this second cup of coffee had utterly failed him.

"Ugh," he groaned to himself as he ran a hand of denial through his blond locks. His eyes remained trained on the screen of his laptop as if doing so would magically type the words out. Disability as a trope for entertainment was, he agreed, wrong, and shouldn't be perpetrated just for the sake of a plotline, but when it was two a.m. in the morning with the library security guard looking at people like him with pity and sympathy, Cloud could barely draw the inspiration to make a sound argument for something he unfortunately didn't feel too strongly for.

He took his two hands and patted himself on the cheeks, waking himself up as he shook his head a bit to get it out of the gutter. A part of him reasoned that he'd do more work if he just went back to his apartment, showered, and actually ate something, but the other part knew not to because in his apartment was his bed, and his bed was a very dangerous thing at the moment.

And so, knowing that he was, indeed, already screwed and that he shouldn't dig the grave any further with every hour of late submission, Cloud suppressed his desires to just say "fuck it" and began typing blasphemy by the second.

Because of his fury, he didn't notice the girl who sat in front of him. Seats were filled to the maximum on the first floor because, just like him, there were people rushing deadlines and study hours; empty seats were a rarity in the library. The girl had had her curious, green orbs on him the moment he quietly groaned out loud, amused at how frustrated he sounded. She studied the way he looked so irritated yet at the same time so concentrated as he slowly got the job done, word by word, with those fast fingers of his across the keyboard of his laptop.

Quietly giggling to herself, she packed her stuff since her own night was done while his was probably just starting. Before she left, however, she snuck a piece of strawberry candy over to his side of the table, making sure he didn't notice.

He didn't.

And without another sound, the girl went out the exit of the library, and her spot was quickly taken by someone else.

~.~.~

"Cloud, dude, are you alright? You don't look so goo—"

"Just…" interjected Cloud, eye twitching a bit from both annoyance and from the lack of sleep, "don't say anything. Get to the point, Zack—why am I here?"

Currently, the two college friends were outside in some weird, frilly shop—a shop that Cloud had never paid attention to even though he would always pass by it on the way back to his apartment from campus. When he took another gander at it, he quickly found a probable reason why.

It was way too pink, and it was _way_ too girly for someone like him to ever take notice of. The front lined with rows of flower bouquets, and the windows that stood on both sides of the building were framed by lacy, silky curtains. At first glance, it seemed like a typical flower boutique, but when he took a whiff, he expected to smell only the scent of flowers.

Not _coffee._

Immediately, his mind took the next step in the thinking process. His eyes shot up to look at the name of the shop and had to stifle a small, small laugh at the lack of creativity behind it.

"'Coffee and Flowers'? Really?" Underneath the name were cute drawings of a steaming cup of coffee and a yellow flower—as if it hadn't been obvious enough. He was quick to move his eyes back to Zack to give the taller man a glare, who only gave him a pleading look back in return. Cloud hadn't received a single wink of sleep since he had finished his eleven-page essay two hours ago, and right before he was about to go to bed, Zack had rung him up for an "important favor." Now, as he stood in front of this odd shop with the strange combination of concepts, Cloud knew he had been fooled.

"Look, Cloud, I know you just finished a _huge_ paper and hadn't slept at all," Zack began. Cloud's blank look never disappeared as he shot a dubious brow up. Even to his close friend, Cloud was not afraid to show him how much he annoyed him sometimes.

"You knew, but?"

"So, like, there's this girl I've been talking to."

Cloud sighed immediately the moment his ears heard those cursed words, and they were enough to count him out.

"Bye," he deadpanned. Swiveling on his feet, Cloud turned towards the direction to stalk back to his apartment, but a strong hand grabbed him by the elbow to stop him.

"Wait, wait, hear me out, buddy," Zack insisted, sighing in relief a bit when Cloud turned around to listen to what he had to say. "I'm serious this time. Really."

"You're… _serious?_ " Cloud repeated, stupefied. His other eyebrow joined the already-raised one to show the surprise that he didn't even try to hide.

Being his friend since freshman year of college, Cloud was confident enough to claim that the raven-haired never lacked a girl's presence _ever_. This company came in many different forms, whether it be right by his side or through the texts that blew up his phone. While the guy was a good person—Cloud wouldn't be hanging around him if he wasn't—he had terrible luck with choosing the right people as partners. So many times had Cloud been the unintentional middleman for his affairs since the girls would always come over to _him_ whenever they had problems, and he was starting to get sick of working without pay.

So, to hear that Zack was _serious_ was strange; Zack Fair had never been serious with a girl, period.

And it was all-the-more a reason for Cloud to stay out of it because that just meant a fulltime job as a love counselor.

"We met through a mutual," Zack explained, but Cloud could already hear the words go into one of his ears and fade out through the other. Out of respect for his friend, he tried to continue listening, but most of his mind was preoccupied in suppressing the yawn that threatened tears to fall out of his eyes. "I wasn't interested in her because she's not my usual type, but Cloud, _seriously_ , she is one of the nicest and funniest girls I've ever met. There's something about her, and I just really want to get to know her better."

"And this?" Cloud jerked a thumb over to the shop.

"She works here. I just found out from my friend just an hour ago that she works here every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday at twelve as part-time. I really don't want to mess this up, so I've been taking it slow and trying to get her to notice me a bit more."

"You haven't tried talking to her?" That usually worked, him just talking to the girl. Zack Fair was an attractive man, and any girl that didn't notice him for his looks deserved a trophy. One word from the guy and he would probably win her over in an instant, so for him to drag their two butts over to a weird coffee-flower shop meant something.

"I have, but, uh, she doesn't seem interested quite yet. So, I need an excuse to see her more often."

"And you've decided to drag me along so that you won't look like a loner doing so," Cloud finished for him, highly unamused at this "important favor" bestowed upon him.

Zack nodded enthusiastically, puppy ears already sprung up on his head as he gave Cloud a hopeful look. "Yeah, I don't want to seem like a stalker just visiting her here, so I need someone to tag along with me so I don't look like a creep."

Cloud rubbed his face with his two hands in a poor attempt to somehow just wipe off the fatigue, but none of it came off as he blinked tiringly at his best friend. He had so many questions, such as why it had to be him and why it couldn't have been another day, but Cloud didn't bother wasting the energy to ask them. He'd probably ask them later, but for now, he was going to take advantage of the situation.

"I'm not buying anything here with my own money."

"You got it, pal!"

Cloud allowed Zack to lead the way into uncharted territory. After his unfortunate encounter with the library coffee last night, the smell of coffee beans intermingled with the smell of flowers that wafted throughout the shop gave him a slight reminder of what kind of nightmare he lived just a few hours ago. Nose scrunched and eyebrows lightly knitted together, Cloud tried not to show the obvious distaste too clearly on his face.

With the shop being close to campus and all, many people his age teemed the tables and the counters with their friends and their books for the upcoming exams. The blond began to get a bit interested with the way the drink combos came with a flower or two as well depending on the order. There was no doubt that most of their sales boomed because of the aesthetics of the two elements paired, even if the coffee itself was successful with its taste.

"So, who is she?" Cloud dared to ask as his eyes lazily scanned the counter to study the workers behind it. He wondered what kind of girl could get his well sought-after friend to just come to a place like this because Zack _hated_ coffee. Unlike the rest of the population here, he had a good schedule, and people with a good schedule never needed to be caffeinated.

"She's over there making a drink right now." Zack discreetly pointed to her as they stood in line, and Cloud followed the direction of the finger until he found what he was looking for.

Cloud blinked. Then, he blinked again. And again until her whole image sank into him slowly like a butter knife.

" _Her?_ " Cloud clarified, not believing his eyes at all.

She really _wasn't_ Zack's type at all.

With long hair tied neatly in a braid and dress traveling down to her shins, the girl that somehow made Zack hopelessly in love harbored a homey, goody-girl image—the opposite of what Zack usually went for. The smile that adorned her face literally brightened up the entire place as her hands busied themselves in pouring a drink into a small, cute, white cup before she tossed it up for the order. When she turned towards their direction, Cloud was able to catch a glimpse of her face. With green, emerald eyes large with mirth and heart-shaped face carved delicately to meet her small chin, the girl radiated a type of innocence that was rare these days.

"Yup, that's her," Zack said almost proudly. "Isn't she cute?"

"Er," Cloud let out uncomfortably, not too keen on this sort of talk as he tried to register the fact that his best friend wasn't going after some busty woman this time. "She's a bit, uh," he tried to find the right words so that he didn't come off as offensive, " _boring_ relative to your tastes." The girl wasn't bad looking or anything—she was just a bit different from what he had expected since he was preparing to see a lot more from the girl that got his best friend all serious and everything.

"Look, I know that she's not the type I usually go for, but I _swear_ to you, Cloud, if you hold a conversation with her, you'd—geez, if I say anymore, I'm just going to sound stupid," Zack sighed dreamily as his eyes never left her figure. Cloud simply snorted as a response before he crossed his arms and tried his best not to just fall asleep standing.

When the two of them reached the front of the line, the girl recognized Zack and happily waved at him, and Cloud gave him a weird look when he _giggled_ and smiled back.

There was no saving the guy—he was _whipped._

"Aerith, hey! What the, I didn't know you worked here!"

Cloud tried not to visibly roll his eyes because this was just getting too corny.

"Hi, Zack! Didn't know you were a guy who went for coffee; you don't look it," the girl mused as she tapped a few things on the tablet. Her eyes never left the screen as she punched a bunch of buttons. "Is this your first time here? I can recommend you some stuff if you'd like!"

"Oh, no worries, I think I know what I want. Can I get a large, iced Americano, the one that comes with the white carnation?" Zack completely ignored the intense, questioning look Cloud burned into his back as he pretended to scan the menu for any more potential items before he nodded. "Yup, and that'll be it. Oh, that's right. Cloud." He handed the blond his card before he gestured towards a table for two which was getting cleaned up. "Let me go grab that seat, so go ahead and order what you want. It's on me."

Cloud sighed as he played along with Zack's cool-guy act as the black-haired rushed over to secure a table because if he didn't, they would've had left to stand somewhere else, and that probably wasn't what Zack wanted. Bracing himself to stay here for another hour or so, Cloud mentally let out an anguished groan as he approached the cash register.

"Hello, what can I get for you?" the girl asked politely as she managed a small smile towards his way. He didn't get to meet her eyes, however, as his own sapphire ones actually did what it was supposed to and read the menu. Feeling bad that he should've done it before he reached the front of the line, he hurriedly chose some random black tea minus the flower; there was no way he was going to drink a third cup of coffee.

"Iced black tea is good," he said, stifling a yawn as he switched Zack's card for his own. He had been kidding about receiving some sort of payment earlier for his services and felt a bit weird using Zack's card when he wasn't here, so he quelled the itch by just paying for the whole thing. He didn't notice the way the girl gave him a quirked eyebrow.

"Coming your way!" She took his card and inserted the chip in for him. During this brief moment of time, he took a sneak peek at her name tag—he had already forgotten her name earlier when Zack called out for her—and pronounced it in his head.

_Aerith._

It was a nice name—not common at all.

"Thanks," he said when he received his card back. Before he left to join Zack, she spoke up one more time when she handed him his receipt.

"No more coffee? Did the coffee last night at the library scare you?" she giggled.

"Excuse me?" he blurted out as a first response, but he never got his answer as she skipped over to the counter and got replaced by another one of the workers. He quickly made it out of there when the person behind him in line kept shooting him looks for not hurrying it up, but his eyes never left her form as he tried to remember where he could've possibly seen her last night for her to witness his terrible time with the library coffee.

"Something the matter?" Zack asked when the blond took the seat in front of him. Cloud handed him his card back before he shook his head.

"Nothing. So, how long do you plan on staying here, Mr. Americano?" Cloud didn't miss the chance to grill the guy about his order. "You can't handle any type of bitter stuff without looking like you're gonna gag."

"Oh, it can't be that bad, right?"

"Sure."

When Zack received his order with a cute, crisp, yellow flower taped to the side of his cup, he tried tasting it immediately. Cloud rarely laughed, but it took everything he could not to show it as he watched the way the raven-haired tried not to wrinkle his face the moment the liquid touched his tongue.

"Holy sh—" Zack kept himself from cursing as Cloud clicked his tongue in mockery.

"Told you."

When his order of plain, black tea rung up, Cloud left the guy to contemplate his bad decision. His eyes tried to search for the girl again when he approached, mind still unable to give up on trying to remember where he could've seen her before, but when her back kept facing his with no indication of ever turning around, he simply gave up at the end—it didn't matter anyway.

When he took his drink, he didn't notice how a yellow lily was taped to the side of it.

He didn't even order it.

To liven up his boring drink, Cloud fished out the mysterious piece of packaged, strawberry candy that he had found last night in the library from his pocket and popped it into his mouth, silently thanking whoever had gifted it to him.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, I lied about taking it slow and updating this fic after I got some progress done on my other fic. The ideas were rushing, so it was hard to get off the document for CNF (I decided to abbreviate the fic as this hehe) and stop writing on it!
> 
> A little bit of a disclaimer for this fic: it probably won't be too serious/plot-driven like INE, so don't expect any heavy stuff (?) like it! I want this to be chill and fun. As you can see once you finish this chapter, I'm slowly expanding the world, so stay tuned so that you can see how I shape everyone up (?)! HAHA ALL THESE QUESTION MARKS = MY INSECURITIES XD
> 
> But yes, anyway, hope this chapter is a good follow-up from the first!
> 
> Thank you for all your feedback because I didn't expect a lot for the first chapter, but I'm loving the comments I'm receiving! Motivates me to write more and more, ty ty much love, can't love you guys enough.
> 
> But without further ado, here's chapter 2! Enjoy~

Cloud plugged his ears with his fingers when Tifa's loud—now silent—laughter echoed within the chambers of his living room. He gave her an impassioned look, waiting for her to finish before he finally put down his hands and crossed his arms in irritation.

"Haha, so funny," Cloud sarcastically mocked as he regretted his decision in telling the raven-haired what had occurred two days ago. He didn't know why he had expected some support in this situation, maybe even a collaborative bashing on Zack, but all he did was simply fuel her entertainment market. If he didn't know any better, she was laughing more at how easily a pushover he was instead of sharing his sentiment about how idiotic Zack had gotten over a girl. "Laugh all you want—just do it at your own home."

"I'm sorry, I just can't believe that you even played along," Tifa half-heartedly apologized as her chortles finally quieted down. "Cloud Strife at a flower café? Then again, you always go along with Zack's ploys, no matter how dumb. You're such a good friend, aren't you?"

"Better than you'll ever be," Cloud scoffed at his childhood friend. He shuddered at the same time as he thought about all the hell Zack put him through with his cursed relationships. Cloud was the reliable one—the unintentional wingman—in almost every case of disaster that came with Zack's unfortunate inability to handle the girls every time they turned batshit crazy. The blond will never forget how he had to shelter Zack for two weeks because his girlfriend at the time kept stalking around his apartment. It wasn't until _he_ was the one who went up to the girl, told her to buzz off, and got slapped across the face in return—not Zack.

But at least it worked, and Cloud got his room back along with his sanity with that slap.

"What's this I hear about Cloud and a flower café?"

Jessie emerged from her room, which was just a corner away from Cloud's. Clad sloppily in a simple tank-top and shorts, the brunette didn't care who saw her as Cloud covered his eyes with a hand, although allowing a slit so that he could give her an intense, disapproving look.

"Have some decency and put on some _clothes_ ," Cloud sneered. Jessie faked a spit at him as she went over to the kitchen and popped the fridge open with her foot. Taking out a bottle of water, she chugged half of it down before she addressed the blond.

"Oh, shut up, I can dress however I like at _home_ , you prick," she said as she wiped her mouth with the back of her arm. "This is the third place I've moved into during my three years here, and let me tell you something—you've earned the trophy for complaining _the_ most out of all the housemates I've lived with."

"Thanks, I'll hang it on my shelf," Cloud bit back, his talent of spitting fire never losing in rivalry with Jessie's. "If I even have space for it, you know."

"Cheeky brat. Anyway," Jessie pulled out one of the chairs and sat with the two, naturally joining in on the conversation she had overheard through her door. "Flower café? Zack? New girl? What's this I'm hearing?"

"Apparently, Zack's _serious_ now," Tifa informed Jessie as Cloud pinched his eyebrows together wearily. "The girl he's into works at that one coffee-flower fusion shop that's just by the edge of campus. And Cloud over here," the girl pitifully patted the guy on the back, "is getting pulled along like always."

"No surprise there," Jessie remarked as she shook her water bottle back and forth. "Ask this guy a favor and he'll immediately say no, but do you know what the funniest thing is?" She leaned forward towards Tifa for the added effect as she grinned slyly. "He does it anyway! Can you believe a person like him still exists nowadays?"

"Right?"

The two girls laughed at their shared thoughts about Cloud as he rubbed a hand down his face in one, slow motion. It was as if everyone was out to team up against him, but he had no doubts that his "foul" mouth had something to do with it. Not wanting to deal with the girl talk anymore, he stood up and grabbed his backpack and keys from off the couch so that he could head off.

"Where you heading? You still got class?" Tifa asked. She double-checked the time on her wristwatch. "Thought you finished in the morning today."

"This girl works every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday in the afternoon," Cloud deadpanned. "And today's Thursday."

There was no need to elaborate more on what he meant as Tifa and Jessie erupted into giggles again, finding the whole situation too comedic for their stomachs to handle.

"Zack honestly needs to treat you out to some place good after all this," mused Tifa as she smiled. "Badger him for it, won't you? You're actually more dedicated to this wingman business more than you look."

"It's probably because he won't ever let it drop otherwise," sighed Cloud defeatedly. "I'd rather just tag along with his antics and at least get some work done in that shop than to have him blow up my phone about her constantly."

"Just say you have a soft spot for Zack already and admit how you're honestly just helping him out," scoffed Jessie. "You'd be a lot approachable—and cuter."

"Doesn't mean anything if it's coming from you. Anyway, bye," Cloud said as a farewell as he went over to the front door and stuffed his feet into his shoes. "Sorry for leaving you here, Tifa, but I doubt you'd care."

"This is my second home," and Tifa followed up with the statement by opening a fresh bag of chips lying around the table as if it were her own. "No worries here. Let me know how everything goes!"

"No," he flatly delivered, and before the girls could tease him anymore, he shut the door to his apartment with a loud slam. After all, he needed to save his steel and willpower for when he needed it the most once he stepped inside the dumb coffee-flower shop.

As he walked out of range from his apartment complex and towards the bus stop, he wondered how long he could keep up this gimmick for Zack. The entire atmosphere around the shop just wasn't it for him; it was too loud and too active for someone as socially-introverted as him. While the people there had their books and study groups and everything, all of it was just a pretense to host chit-chat parties, ones that Cloud couldn't block out no matter how hard he tried. It would've been better if Zack allowed him to retain any peace left lying around, but it was hard when the guy kept bugging him with his lovesick comments.

A day in the flower café wasn't enough for Cloud to even understand what about the girl had gotten Zack completely head-over-heels in love with her. She was "funny" and "nice," but that was about as far as details had gone. All Zack did during their one hour there two days ago was admire her when she wasn't looking as she worked diligently, and Cloud was there to bear witness to the entire thing. Sometimes, the blond wondered why he even went out of his way just to endure this sort of torture, but such thoughts potentially led to existential questions, and he preferred not to go down that road.

When Cloud got off the bus stop and started his walk over towards Coffee & Flowers, he wondered what sort of silly act Zack would put up again today. He didn't believe it at first when the future businessman claimed that he was serious, but with the way red hearts danced in his eyes and the way he tried so hard to act cool in front of her, Cloud knew that his crush on the girl was real, and that it wasn't going to end anytime soon.

What was more interesting was that the girl seemed absolutely unfazed with his subtle hints with the way she acted so casual with him. A part of Cloud wondered if she was just clueless towards his advancements or was simply just casting a blind eye towards his attempts, but only time would tell.

If only time could go faster.

"Just get the girl already, Zack," Cloud muttered to himself once he spotted his all-too familiar figure by the entrance of the coffee-flower shop.

"Hey, Cloud, over here!" Zack excitedly waved over to Cloud, almost hitting someone in the process who tried to get past the door. He apologized profusely before his happy gaze turned back towards Cloud. Not expecting any less from the always-energetic young man, Cloud managed a small sigh before he readied himself.

"Are you really going to get coffee again this time?" Cloud grimaced. "I'm telling you, you're not going to get used to it any time soon." It wouldn't have been an exaggeration to say that Zack almost saw death two days ago when he drank that iced Americano. In order to cover him and his constant, suppressed gagging just in case his crush looked their way, Cloud sat facing her while Zack had his back towards her, which defeated the purpose. They were there so that Zack could shamelessly ogle her and all her barista glory, not so that Cloud could be some sort of watchman and report to him her every move.

"I'm going to be an explorer and try all sorts of things on that menu," winked Zack as he opened the door for Cloud. "Today will be a macchiato."

"… That's better—kind of. But why not just stick to something completely sweet and call it a day?"

"That's boring. I gotta show her I'm a guy of diversity after all!"

Cloud wanted to say that there was more to diversity than just what kind of drinks he could drink without throwing up, but he humored the guy anyway as he lightly shook his head in mock disappointment and entered the flower café.

Again, the smell of coffee mixed with the scent of flowers hit him oddly as the pristine place greeted them with all sorts of aesthetic decorations. Fairy lights hung on the wall with Polaroid pictures pinned underneath. Images of both customers and workers alike were displayed, along with their huge smiles and drinks in their hand. Many handcrafted wreathes made of flowers and long grass were neatly woven and hung against the wall; when Cloud took a closer look, he realized that they were real.

This place was nice and all, but it was definitely a death hazard for anyone who had allergies.

"Great, so she's here. Kunsel wasn't lying about her shifts after all."

"So Kunsel was the one who hooked the two of you up with the study group," Cloud mused, but then a frown slowly started to form at his forehead. "Then why am I here? Can't you drag Kunsel along instead of me?"

"You're the best man for the job, Cloud; no one can replace you," Zack replied cheekily.

"You mean I'm probably the only one who can tolerate your ass."

"That, and because I feel the least awkward with you when it comes to this sort of stuff. Take this as a compliment, but even with your introverted-ass self, you surprisingly fit well with your surroundings."

Cloud cocked an eyebrow up, not sure whether or not this popular, young man was just bullshitting him. When his grin never went away, the blond let out an annoyed _tsk_ and folded his arms.

"Whatever."

When they neared the front of the line, Zack urged him to go grab a table. Because the girl had already greeted them from afar once her green eyes spotted them, Zack didn't need to have Cloud as a cover-up anymore and shooed him away to get a table so that he could have an over-the-counter conversation with her during his order without the blond's presence. Wordlessly, Cloud obliged, glad to avoid witnessing a potential cringefest of corniness. Still having enough of that terrible library coffee to last him a month, Cloud settled with another order of his plain, iced black tea before he left the line and went to go find a table for two.

Luckily finding a table with the perfect view of what went behind the counter just for Zack, Cloud settled himself down, eyes trained on the two once Zack reached the cash register. He must've said something funny, for the girl started to giggle as she tapped things on her tablet. Her mouth moved as she spoke with him, but there was something odd that took Cloud quite a while to notice.

She must've been shy or something because throughout the entire conversation, her eyes avoided his, only gazing up to meet with them briefly before returning to her tablet punching. It must've been busy too, all that behind-the-counter work.

When their drinks were made, Zack fetched them and placed them on their table.

"Is this all you're going to drink when you come here—just black tea?" Zack commented on his friend's boring drink as he took the seat in front of him. "There's a whole lot of other stuff on the menu."

"Oh, so you actually read it this time," Cloud quipped. He took a sip out of his cool, sweetened tea before he shrugged. "Nothing wrong with something simple; I like it. The more important question is whether or not you're going to be okay."

"Of course, I'll be. Bitterness is something you can get used to, right? I'll be fine!" To show his determination, Zack took a swig out of his drink, mildly scrunched up his face, and managed a painful smile. "I'll be fine," he repeated.

Cloud actually thought he was going to be okay until Zack started to fidget in his seat half an hour later.

"Um, you alright there?" asked Cloud as he blinked at his friend in question. "You're not looking so good."

"Is there milk in here or something?" Zack said uncomfortably.

Cloud couldn't believe it as he ran his hand slowly down his face for the second time that day.

"Zack…" Cloud shook his head. His friend was smart, one of the smartest guys he knew both in the books and in the streets, but sometimes… he was questionable. "Zack, you ordered a macchiato."

"And?"

"That stuff has milk in it, along with lattes, cappuccinos, etc. for future references. What, are you lactose intolerant or something?"

"Sorry, I gotta go to the bathroom real quick. Does that answer your question?"

Cloud simply waved him off with a hand towards the direction of the bathroom, and off his dear friend went, making sure he stood tall and straight when he walked past the cash register before he sought refuge from the toilets. Having some time to himself for just a couple of minutes, Cloud took out his laptop and started to do a few school-related stuff on it.

When he was feeling a bit hungry a minute later, he found no harm in buying one of the sandwiches on display. With their table in his line of vision, he wasn't afraid to leave his stuff there and go back in line to grab a bite. After all, he needed to have a stomach to endure the last two hours or so before her shift ended.

What was it, again, Aerish? Aeris? He had forgotten her name yet again even though he swore Zack kept uttering it like some sort of blessed mantra, but it was probably because he didn't care enough with the fact that he was going to have a _lot_ of chances to learn her name. Eventually, Zack would mention her enough until her name got carved into his brain or something.

"Can't wait," he sighed to himself, busying his fingers by opening and closing his wallet.

As he waited in the somewhat-long line, his eyes began to wander around just to observe stuff during his wait. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary: people studying with their books and laptops out, people chatting with straws in their mouths, people just chilling around after their drinks were finished, people taking pictures of a certain worker without her permission.

Nothing unusual.

_Wait._

Cloud crossed his arms as he gave his eyes a hard blink to make sure that what he was seeing wasn't just a hallucination. In front of him stood some man—probably in his thirties—as his hands held his phone and angled it awkwardly to "discreetly" snap a shot. With black, oily hair messily combed over to the side and oversized, graphic tee hanging past the waistband of his baggy jeans, the man didn't seem to know how to keep up his appearance.

Taking interest why he was being a bit suspicious with his phone, Cloud tip-toed to peek over his shoulder and frowned immediately when he saw who he was trying to steal a pic from: Zack's girl.

Cloud took too long debating whether or not he should interrupt the creep with a loud clearing of his throat to snap him out of his stalker-ish ways, for the guy already went up to the cash register when it was the girl's turn to man the front.

"Hello," the man said suavely. "I'd like a cup of black coffee, please."

"Ah, yes, of course!" the girl said cheerily as she tapped some stuff on the touchscreen.

If she was uncomfortable, then she did a good job hiding it. Feeling that it was none of his business at this point, Cloud didn't think too much about it anymore as he watched the girl handle the creep with five-star customer service.

"Cash or card, sir?" she asked.

"Card."

The man slipped out his card from his wallet and handed it to the girl, who took it gratefully. When she outstretched her hand for him to take it back once she finished inserting the chip, however, things were a bit different.

Cloud watched as the man's hand shot past the card and grabbed onto her own, fingers feeling her wrist up as the card hung in the air forgotten. Because their small connection was hidden behind the side of the display case of food, no one saw what was going on except for Cloud who stood right in their view.

What was the most shocking, though, was the way the girl handled the guy with grace.

"Your card, sir?" she politely smiled as she made no movement to shake off his hand. Hers was still holding up his card for him to take.

"Ah, yes, my card. Thank you," the creep replied. His fingers lingered on her wrist before they slid down the length of her hand and finally placed themselves where they were supposed to to take the card out of her hold. Once he was off of her, the girl swiftly ripped the receipt off the register and, this time, slid the piece of paper across the counter instead of physically handing it to him.

"Your order will be right up!"

"Thanks."

And the man finally left to go over to the side to wait for his order.

"Next?"

Cloud snapped out of his bystander mode and took a step forward to take the space where the creep was just at a moment ago. Being a fool again for not planning his order ahead of time, he took a second to glaze his eyes over what they offered through the display window and pointed a finger at what he wanted.

"Can I get this tomato and mozzarella sandwich?"

"Of course!" she smiled cordially at him, eyes meeting his sapphire ones in a warm gaze as she gave him a nod. "Let me go grab it for you real quick."

Her nimble form stooped down so that she could reach in and get what he wanted. Putting it in a paper bag and rolling it up, she put in his order on the tablet before she showed him the price.

"Card or cash?"

"Cash."

Cloud took his sweet time opening his wallet and leafing through his bills as he did some mental math. As his fingers slipped out a couple of bucks, the girl waited patiently for him, but she hadn't expected him to say anything else.

"You okay?" he asked nonchalantly, eyes never leaving his wad of bills as he fished for the right amount.

The girl's smile faltered microscopically, but she failed to say anything as Cloud handed the exact amount, coins and everything.

"If so, alright," he said one last time when she didn't say anything back—not that he cared. When she handed him the bag containing his energy food for the next two hours, he muttered a quick "thanks" and took it from her. He made sure he grabbed the bag and only the bag.

"Have a nice meal," she said softly, but he didn't catch what she said as he left to go back to his table. She didn't have time to think about what just happened as she snapped back to work mode and brought on another smile on her face for her next customer.

"So, what did I miss?" Zack grinned when he came back from the bathroom a changed man. He made sure to push his macchiato over to the side when he sat back down, causing Cloud to roll his eyes for the nth time.

"Nothing much," came his usual answer. He figured that what he just witnessed wasn't too notable to bring up—at least, not yet—so he didn't bother as he typed away on his laptop. "Hope you didn't give the toilet too much trouble."

"Even though I know the true reason why you have friends, I'm surprised you never scared them off with that mouth of yours before," Zack scoffed in good mirth as he took out his own laptop from his backpack. "Tifa is a fighter. Along with Jessie and Biggs and even freaking Barret."

"What can I say, I'm popular," Cloud snorted sarcastically as he took another sip out of his black tea. "I know how to keep friends—by putting them in debt. That includes you."

"What a loanshark," Zack quipped along. "So, are you holding this whole thing over my head too?"

"Of course, I am; this ain't free." Cloud gestured with his hands the entirety of the shop. "I'm wasting the free time I have just so that I can watch you fall in love—live."

"What can I say, you got VIP tickets to the show."

"Refund, please."

While the two sat in Coffee & Flowers for a really unproductive reason, the situation didn't stop them from actually getting some work done. Zack was actually pretty studious despite his silly front, so he didn't stick around just staring at his crush the entire time like last time. Eyes mostly on his laptop, Zack impressed Cloud with the way he was still able to focus despite the super distracting environment.

Another hour and a half passed, and that was when Zack called it a day.

"It'd be a bit awkward to leave at the same time she's leaving, right? Let's head home now, shall we?"

"Gladly," Cloud agreed as he packed up his stuff and swung his backpack over his shoulder. He finished his tea before he tossed it into the recycling and followed Zack out.

"Aerith! See you later," Zack called out as _Aerith_ —yes, that was her name, Cloud remembered—cleaned up the counters with a rag. Since the shop was about to close in another hour, no one stood in line anymore as people who had stayed nearly the whole day started to leave.

"Haha, see you, Zack!" Aerith returned his farewells as she looked up momentarily to give the two a friendly wave of goodbye. Cloud awkwardly waved back out of politeness, keeping it short as he quickly returned his hand back inside his pocket; Zack never introduced the two to each other anyway, and it seemed like he had no plans to.

"Get home safely, alright?"

"Yup, you too."

Zack opened the door as Cloud walked through, closely following behind as the bell atop the door rang with their exit. The fresh smell of the night hit their noses, whisking away the smell of coffee and flowers that they had grown accustomed to while cars and their bright headlights zoomed past them on the streets. Lights from the campus buildings from afar lit yellow as their tall library stood in view on top of the curved hill, and when they looked to the other side, tall apartment complexes reigned as they lined the streets with their impressive structures.

"Did you bus here?" Zack inquired as he took out his keys from his pocket. "I came by car; I can give you a lift."

"I'll take you up on the offer," nodded Cloud.

"My car's just 'round the corner of this building in the parking lot," pointed out Zack, and he led the way to it. "Finding parking here sucks sometimes since it's kind of small—round and round, I go around the block."

"Just don't waste gas and bus like the rest of us commoners," Cloud mused. "It's not that bad: bus life. Although, it is a pain sometimes when you miss i—"

Cloud gradually started to walk slower until he halted to a complete stop a good distance away from the corner of the shop. He didn't look back though as he sucked his lips in.

"When you miss what, the bus? Yeah, no—I'm not all about that. Cloud?" Zack turned around when he noticed how Cloud had stopped in his tracks. He looked conflicted, earning himself a question. "What's up?"

"Er, I changed my mind," Cloud blurted out. "I think I'm good on the ride, but thanks for the offer."

"Your apartment's on the way to mine. It's not a hassle," Zack insisted, mistaking his hesitance as courtesy. "Just hop on—it won't take long."

"No, I, uh, forgot I had something to do. I'm gonna go back to campus and finish it up," Cloud lied through his teeth. Fortunately, Zack had absolutely no clue and nodded in understanding.

"Sucks that you realized it this late! Get home safe, buddy. I'll see you later."

"Yup, bye."

Cloud pretended to walk towards campus as he listened in on Zack's footsteps. Once he heard him shut his car door closed, rev up the engine, and exit out onto the street towards the way home, Cloud quickly turned his feet around and walked back towards Coffee & Flowers.

There was no doubt about it, what he saw.

Aerith's stalker had been waiting outside for her by the corner of the shop the entire time.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tada! After finishing chapter 20 of INE (which is under beta reader if you follow my twitter (a) cresciejo **sorry, im too lazy to give a hyperlink xD**) I pooped this chapter out immediately HAHAHA. Again, loving the comments (didn't expect much this time around either, but y'all always surprise me with the love so). I have a lot of fun writing this sort of fluffy stuff, so it's great to see people receiving the same energy when they read each chapter! Hopefully, that'll continue on for a long time :)
> 
> But yes, without further ado, here is chapter 3! Enjoy!

Cloud had no clue why he didn't just tell Zack so that they could work on this odd situation together, but his mouth moved before his brain could give permission, so off Zack's car went, away into the distance to leave Cloud by himself with this predicament.

When he walked back towards the flower café, he could see the creep's shadowed figure just peeking out slightly from the corner, keeping an eye on when Aerith would come out through the door. His hands fumbled together in a strange tangle as the white of his teeth gleamed in the moonlight with his smile. Cloud could tell—he could tell how excited he was just waiting for her appearance as his hunched figure bent around the corner.

He told his feet to just walk right past when he reached the shop, to just go home because none of this was his business nor was it any of his concern. He had things to do and places to be; he didn't have the time nor energy to help out a stranger whose name he couldn't even get right despite the many times Zack had uttered it. What would've been a better move was to tell Zack about the stalker and let him handle it—it would've given him a great opportunity to interact with her more and look like a superhero in front of her too—but he didn't, and that was his slip-up.

Just when he built his resolve to just _go_ and leave it all behind, Aerith exited out of her shop, fresh out of her uniform and back into her regular clothes with her backpack swung over one shoulder.

"I'll see you on Saturday!" she hollered cheerfully to her co-workers inside before she let the door close behind her. She stretched her arms up above her head to release all the tension in her shoulders from the full day of work and stifled a yawn with a hand; she was completely unaware of the stalker who took a step out from the corner to approach her. He was about to take another step.

Until Cloud sped up, walked past him, and stopped right in front of her, spooking her greatly as she jolted a bit from his sudden appearance.

 _You've done goof this time, Cloud Strife_ , he thought to himself as he watched her green orbs grow large out of surprise and scan him from head to toe.

"Hi," he lamely said, and he wished he could've kicked himself for saying something so stupid. He wasn't doing any better than the stalker, now that he looked at it. Male? Check. Stranger? Check. Waiting outside for her to come out? Check. Being a complete fool? Definite check.

"… Hi," she greeted back, and her smile grew when she recognized him. "You're Zack's friend."

"Er, yeah," he confirmed as he leaned his weight over to one leg. He rummaged through his suddenly-lacking reservoir of words as she looked past his shoulder and at the sides, a small, light frown creased against her forehead.

"He's not here? Did he go home without you?"

"Yeah, he went home." His statements were so straightforward and plain, Aerith had a hard time continuing to talk to him as her smile wavered a little bit at their inflexible conversation. Seeing how it was going to be hard to go on with the farce, she went straight to the point.

"Is there a problem?" she tilted her head to the side, eyes curious as she looked up at him. "Are you waiting for something?"

Now that he had a closer look at her face, he could kind of see why Zack had his brain all melted for her. With eyelashes long and skin as smooth as silk, her face was shaped very prettily as her soft tresses curled and framed it.

"Uh, I was waiting for you," he unintentionally blurted out, mind too busy studying her face to realize what he just spat out. He could see the way her eyes blinked rapidly at him in astonishment, believing that her ears were playing tricks on her for a second before she finally reacted.

"And why is that?"

Cloud expected her to regard him as a total freak, not to smile at him.

"I, uh," Cloud glanced behind him to see if the stalker was there at all because if he wasn't, he chose the wrong night to act like an awkward idiot, "I just wanted to tell you."

"Tell me what?"

"That you make really nice, iced black tea."

Oh, he was _done._

Her smile faltered as it dissipated, only to be replaced with a quizzical eyebrow cocked up on her forehead. Cloud immediately died inside, his stomach crippling as he repeated those very words in his head. _Nice black tea? Really?_ While he was good at exchanging fire with his friends, he was terrible with strangers; this interaction with her was the worst one yet.

"I'm glad you enjoyed your tea. Come back for more anytime, okay?" The smile she gave to every customer showed on her face. If he hadn't seen her earlier smile, then he wouldn't have known how she forced this one a little bit. "It sure is getting late; get home safe, alright?"

"Wait, wait, wait," he took a step to the side to block her path, not wanting her to walk straight into the stalker. When he heard some feet shuffling from behind them from the distance, he knew that the guy was still there, watching them as he refrained himself from stepping out.

Aerith opened her mouth to speak, but she stopped herself when she noticed how Cloud was being fidgety about something as he kept glancing back. Discreetly sneaking a peek over his shoulder, her blood became cold when she finally saw the outline of her stalker just poking out from the corner of the shop.

"Uh, I guess you saw," muttered Cloud as he dropped the act. He sighed as he stuffed his hands into his pocket, relaxing now as he returned to his normal self. Seeing her eyebrows bent together, he asked, "Do you know him?"

"If I knew him, I don't think he'd be hiding around like that," Aerith groaned as she placed a hand over her head. "He's been… following me around for a while. But he's quite harmless, so I think it's alright."

"'Alright'?" quoted Cloud, taking his turn to shoot an eyebrow up at her this time. "I don't think any case of stalking is 'alright,' but if you say so."

"Well, you're here to help me, right?"

Her smile returned in full force, but this time, there was some sort of mischief in it, and he didn't like it one bit.

Before he could say anything to deny her allegations, a "whoa!" escaped his lips when she took his arm and swung it over her own shoulders, laughing as she stood snug to his side. Instinctively, he tried to back away from the close contact, but the hand on his wrist anchored him there. His hand hovered awkwardly over one of her shoulders as he refused to settle it down anywhere on her body.

"What are you doing?" he deadpanned, not amused with what this girl was trying to pull.

Aerith giggled as she angled her head to look up at him, smile wide as her eyes twinkled underneath the front lights of the shop.

"Gotta ward him off somehow, right? I think this should do the trick." Seeing how he wasn't grabbing onto her, she took her other hand and placed it on top of his hovering one to securely fasten it onto her shoulder. "Now, look natural, why don't you?"

"… I didn't sign up for this." But nonetheless, he hesitantly gripped her shoulder as they began walking the opposite way. He was beyond uncomfortable holding onto some random girl who probably didn't even know his name, but because the situation called for it, he simply sighed and played along. Mentally wishing for Zack to be here in his stead, he made sure that in the future, he wouldn't dive head first anymore. "So, how long?"

"How long what?" she replied as she skipped a little bit in her step. She looked way too comfy as she took out her phone and began to scroll through it mindlessly. "You mean how long the stalker's been around?"

"What else?"

"Hm," she slipped her phone into her back pocket as she took a moment to think. It was bad enough if she had to take this long to answer. "I think about a month. Yup, a month, when spring semester started. I took on a new rotation, so he's been oddly available every time I'm working my shift."

"Never thought to tell him off?" grunted Cloud. His other hand also busied with his phone, eyes never leaving it as he sought distraction from it. He wasn't even reading the stuff displayed, but it did take his mind off from the fact that Zack's girl was in his arms. "You shouldn't be too nice about this stuff."

"Nice? Who said I was being nice?"

"I saw the way you dealt with him over the counter. That's just going to fuel him, you know."

"What do you expect me to do then?" she suddenly sighed, voice growing tired as she looked up at the miniscule number of stars in the night sky. There wasn't much to see because of the light pollution within the city. "A customer's a customer; can't really do anything about it, especially since I'm female too. Wouldn't want to get my whole workplace in trouble because of a small misdemeanor, right?"

"Ah," Cloud was quick to understand her reasons, so he didn't ask any further as they walked on with no direction. "That kind of sucks."

"You're quick to understand, huh?" Her cheerful voice returned as she tapped the side of her head against his shoulder playfully. "Name."

"Hm?"

"Name. What's your name?"

They paused at the bus stop where she detached herself from him to sit on one of the benches. Figuring that this was her stop as well, he slowly took the seat next to hers, eyes wary as he checked whether or not the stalker had followed them all this way.

He didn't. The coast was clear.

"Cloud," he finally answered once they settled down and waited for the bus to come. "And you?"

"Aw, you don't know my name yet?" she quipped, but she didn't hold it against him for long as she answered him. "Aerith. See?" She brought her backpack up to her front so that she could flash him a customized keychain with her name beautifully written in cursive across it. "Everyone wonders how to spell it, so here you go!"

"Cool," he replied in a monotone, wincing a bit at how disinterested he sounded unintentionally. However, Aerith didn't seem to mind as she hummed a tune underneath her breath, happy as she patiently waited for the bus.

Cloud still couldn't believe how this girl, who was not at all Zack's type, suddenly got him hooked onto the love train, but the blond was slowly getting convinced with the way she had boldly attached onto him with no care in the world about what he thought. Zack liked playful girls after all; maybe this girl wasn't as innocent as she seemed as she turned her head and grinned at him.

"Are we going the same way?"

"Wouldn't be sitting here if we weren't."

" _Pfft_ , you know what I mean. Where do you live? Which apartment complex?"

"The Costa del Sol apartments," he answered. "You?"

"Ooo, I'm the one two blocks away-ish. We're kind of close—one bus stop apart!"

Cloud nodded, not having much to say as he heard the bus from the distance. Standing up, he rolled his shoulder for a bit before he managed a small, tight-lipped smile. "He doesn't know where you live, does he?"

"… You know, that's a good question."

"You're joking," he exasperated.

"Kidding, kidding!" she yipped as she hopped up from her seat. "I was serious when I said he seems harmless. I think he only wants to talk to me, is all."

"Touching your arm all over sure seems harmless alright," Cloud sardonically retorted. He was beginning to get familiar with her, something he didn't intend to do as his mouth began to grill her. "Are you sure?'

"I think so. After all, that display we got going earlier seemed to do the trick."

Cloud felt a bit hot as he rolled his eyes and fished out his bus pass from his pocket. "Whatever."

Together, the two climbed onto the bus. He didn't think that he would continue to be in her presence when he sat down at a vacant seat, only for her to sit in the adjacent one. Seeing how it would, indeed, be a bit awkward to sit apart from each other after all that—his social awareness was too lacking to think of this automatically—he didn't say anything against it as he hugged his backpack and made sure it didn't spill over to her side.

"So, is my workplace your new study hangout?" she suddenly asked, causing him to jump a bit. He hadn't expected any sort of conversation to continue between them.

"Huh? Uh, yeah," he cleared his throat, making sure he didn't sound too unnatural, "It is. It was my idea." This was his poor attempt at covering up for Zack, but Aerith surprisingly didn't sound convinced as she let out a long and drawn-out "hm."

"Really now? If I didn't know any better, I would've thought that it was Zack dragging you along."

"Of course not." He said this a bit too quickly, groaning inwardly at how he just gave it away so easily as she nodded mockingly in understanding.

"Didn't take you for a flower boy," she jested. "Then again, I didn't take you for a black tea person either. Are you too scared of coffee now after you got a taste of the library's?"

"Okay, how do you know?" he questioned when the topic came up. Certain that he had never seen her before until he stepped foot into the flower-coffee shop, he furrowed his eyebrows as he racked his brain one more time to perhaps remember. When nothing came up, he gave up. "Have we met before?"

"Since you don't know, I'm not telling you," she teased in a sing-song voice. "It'll be a mystery!"

Cloud scoffed as he found himself falling for her traps again and again, but a small smirk played at his lips as his eyes looked over to the window. Seeing her reflection bouncing off from the glass, he saw the way she undid her braid and let her hair tumble out in soft curls as she ran her two hands through it. He could smell her shampoo as she did so, mentally noting how it was a nice scent of flowers mixed with a little bit of citrus.

"Are you Zack's best friend or something?" she spoke once more, keeping their conversation running as she went to work at the tangles in her hair. "He doesn't say much about you when we chat, even though he's bringing you along every time."

"He doesn't bring me along," came another one of Cloud's attempt of a cover-up, but it was very half-assed. He was sure she knew already—Zack didn't do a good job of laying low—so he didn't even bother trying to correct her anymore. "But yeah, we're pretty close."

Seeing this as his chance to act as a proper wingman, Cloud began to boost Zack's image up. "He's a really nice guy. It's fun to be around him and all. I'm a bit boring, so having a guy like him around brightens up the mood a lot." _A little bit too bright sometimes, though._ "It gets annoying though, when girls come up to me asking about him."

 _Was that too much?_ he asked himself as he waited for her to respond. He wasn't too good with this wingman business, but it didn't hurt to try. After all, this was the only reason why he was even talking to her; he had no reason to associate himself with this girl without Zack.

"Yeah, Zack's pretty nice," she hummed, a bit quieter now that the bus began rolling and silence hung in the air despite it being packed with students. "And all the reasons you just said. Do a lot of girls like him?"

Cloud snorted. "Too much. But he doesn't let it get to his head." He made sure to add in the last part just in case she was turned off at the prospect of him being a ladies' man. "He's apparently everyone's ideal. Of course, I don't see it—I just see an idiot."

Woops, he didn't mean to let the last part slip out, so he quickly tried to fix it. "Once you get to really know him though, he's a really wholesome guy."

He had expected the giggles from her at his failed advertisement as she laughed into her hand, beyond amused at how Cloud tried to compliment his friend, only to diss him at the same time.

"I know, he's a nice guy! You don't have to tell me that," she assured, eyes crinkled in high spirits as she quelled her laughter. "He's enjoyable to talk to and everything."

Just when Cloud thought that things were actually hitting off between her and Zack, what she said next really brought down the hammer. "He's everyone's ideal, hm? Haha, guess I'm the minority in that aspect. He's a great guy, but he gives off the total big brother vibe, if anything."

 _Ouch_. Cloud winced at that statement as he took the hit for his friend. Never in his life did he ever think he would hear someone from the female population just brother-zone him like this, so the immense pity he felt for Zack was instant.

"He might look like that, but he's a romanticist," Cloud tried, but there was no saving this one as Aerith shook her head, not at all aware of the kind of thoughts the blond had as a failed wingman.

"Not my type."

"What's your type then?"

This question was one-hundred percent asked for Zack's sake, but Cloud didn't realize what kind of second meaning it had when it came directly out of his mouth. As a result, Aerith's lips parted slightly at the suddenness of his question. However, they quickly curled into a coy smile—one that he didn't understand the meaning of.

"Interested to know?"

"Yeah."

"Hm, I wouldn't want my guy too flashy."

Cloud began to scribble mental notes for his best friend; he really needed to get paid for this. "Flashy?"

"Someone not too out there, you know?" Aerith mused, fingers now running through her smooth, brown locks. "I like someone who is down-to-earth. _Real._ You get me?"

"… Sure."

"Someone… genuine, and always caring for those around him, even if it comes with a silly front."

When the bus halted at a certain stop, she stood up and swung her backpack over her shoulder again. Figuring that this was her stop, Cloud gave her a small wave in goodbye. However, she wasn't done with their conversation just yet.

"I would like someone nice of course. But I wouldn't mind if he was… a bit _boring_."

"… Excuse me?"

"Come by for a cup of _coffee_ next time," Aerith grinned. "It'll be on me—as thanks for bodyguarding me today. Make sure you swing by."

Before he could reject her offer, she had already skipped down the steps of the bus, rendering him completely speechless.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love writing emotionally constipated Cloud


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hee haw surprise, here's another chapter written :^) I would make this A/N somewhat long to update y'all about my feelings about this fic, but ya girl gotta wake up in 5 hours after the time of release of this chapter. So, just wanted to say that all the support and comments got me pushing to write this next chapter, so here you guys go! Your love is rewarded xD
> 
> Hopefully this chapter is good as the others!
> 
> More to come in regards to Cloud's friendships outside of Aerith!
> 
> P.S. Sorry for any typos, what can you expect from me who has horrible proofreading skills xDddDd

"Jessie!"

Cloud dropped everything he was doing at the sink just so that he could jump over and turn off the stove. However, his efforts were too late, and water spilled everywhere onto the electric stove as everything sizzled noisily into steam.

From the living room table, Barret could be heard cackling as he watched the blond fumble with Jessie's pot of boiling water with instant noodles in it, which now floated soggy and mushy atop the spilled liquid. He settled the pot over to a cooler place as he agitatedly threw down a rag next to the coil to soak up the mess before he called out for her again. "God damn it, Jessie!"

"What, what?" came her annoyed voice as she stomped out of her room. When she saw Cloud cleaning up her mess, her sass immediately died as she smiled sheepishly at him. "Woops, sorry. I was busy studying."

"Cooking this stuff doesn't take half an hour; just stay out here and watch," Cloud growled as he made space in the kitchen for the brunette to deal with her mess. He gave her a look of disgust when she took a fork and slurped some plain noodles into her mouth.

"Hey, it's still pretty good!" she exclaimed excitedly as she shoved Cloud over to the side so that she could pour out the water. "Not bad for overcooked noodles."

"I like you a lot, Jessie!" Barret rumbled with laughter as he typed away on his laptop. "No one can piss off this asshole the way you do!"

"I hope your doctoral thesis never gets finished," Cloud spat at the dark-skinned man as he returned back over to wash the dishes. "Wait, just kidding—finish it so that I don't have to live with your ass anymore."

"I'm staying for a long while, Spikey," came another obnoxious round of laughter but it abruptly came to a halt as the man gave out a depressing sigh. "A long while." And he returned to his work on his laptop.

"I've never heard of an eighth year PhD student before," snickered Jessie to Cloud, but she made sure her voice was loud enough for Barret to hear. "Then again, only a mad fool would want to get one in electrical engineering. Those type of people really do exist around here, don't they?"

"I don't like you anymore, Jessie," Barret said impassively. Feeling too much young energy from the two at the moment, he escaped back into his single room with a loud shut to his door.

"You're gonna end up on everyone's blacklist at this point," scoffed Cloud as he finished the last of his dishes and placed them on the drying rack. Carelessly wiping his hands on his pants, he leaned his back against the kitchen counter as he watched Jessie make her terribly-overcooked noodles. "If you didn't know yet, you're already on mine."

"Like I give a shit," Jessie rolled her eyes, but she grinned anyway as she ate directly out of the pot. "Want some?"

"No."

Cloud pushed himself off the counter as he plopped himself onto the sofa instead, exhausted from a long day of classes. He was unfortunately running on only three hours of sleep after he did the horrible mistake of joining Biggs for late-night gaming. The future political scientist convinced him by simply handing him the controller right when the blond was about to go to sleep after drinking a glass of water, so a planned eight-hours of sleep became severely truncated before he knew it. It didn't help when Jessie and Barret came outside to work either, encouraging the spirits of sleep deprivation.

In short, his house was filled with bad influences, but at least they all came down together.

Cloud and Barret each had a single in the three-bedroom apartment while Jessie and Biggs shared a double. While Barret was working towards his PhD in electrical engineering—something that literally shaved his life away—and Biggs with his political science degree, Cloud majored in kinesiology while Jessie in chemistry. The girl had a strange interest in chemical explosives, so the blond wouldn't be surprised if she got involved with the military weapon industry sometime in the future. Biggs was too good with his logic in debates, and while Barret seemed like a complete doofus sometimes despite his old age, his ability to understand the most abstract things served him good in his field.

As for Cloud, he wanted to be a physical therapist. Athletics had always been his strong suit since high school, so finding a career with it didn't seem like a bad idea. So far, he was enjoying everything college had in store for him—at least, for the most part.

"Yo, Tifa and I are about to go on campus to study," said Jessie as she finished the last of her noodles. Cloud had no idea how she finished so fast as she dumped the pot into the sink and began washing it. "Wanna join? I know you got a shit ton of work to do after your gaming last night. Don't act like you don't have any."

"When did Tifa and you get so buddy-buddy?" Cloud questioned as he leaned his head back and closed his eyes. He debated whether or not to take a nap instead as he yawned. "I shouldn't have introduced you two to each other; I've created a monstrosity."

"Shut up, I know you enjoy being in the presence of such beautiful women."

"Sorry, I must be blind."

"You bitch."

Cloud caught the bundle of paper towels that was harshly thrown at him, lazily cracking an eye open to look at her. Tossing it back, he sighed before he gave in. "Sure, I'll join. I need to get out of this house more often anyway."

"Your trips to Coffee & Flowers with Zack aren't enough?"

At the mention of that cursed shop, Cloud let out a low groan as he collapsed onto his side against the length of the sofa. He had forgotten about the entire fiasco that happened last week on Thursday since he'd rather forget his poor attempt at being Zack's love accomplice. Since Zack had been busy on Saturday, the blond was spared from another excruciating session of corniness; he wasn't sure how long he would last watching a lovestruck Zack puffing his chest out like a bird in a mating dance. The cringe was too much; anymore and Cloud was going to turn in his resignation letter. However, it wasn't just Zack anymore.

That girl—she was strange. And a bit too dangerous. He didn't know what it was that made her seem like so—she had left him completely clueless after their conversation in the bus—but he wasn't going to stick around to find out. Determined to avoid her as much as possible when he wasn't with Zack, Cloud didn't want to get into any sort of messy business that might unintentionally break the bro code. While he was sure nothing of the sort was going to happen—they had no basis to even talk to each other anyway—he didn't want Zack to get any kind of wrong idea.

"Let's not talk about it," Cloud settled as he stood up, stretched his arms for a bit, and grabbed onto his backpack. "Meeting Tifa at the bus stop?"

"Yup. Let's go."

When Cloud stuffed his feet into his white shoes, Jessie let out a low, impressed whistle.

"Just got those babies cleaned?"

"Yeah. After stepping into a bunch of mud last week, they're finally not looking like they got shat on."

"Whew. Hope nothing happens to them."

When Cloud saw Tifa for the first time in five days, he was not expecting the dark bags underneath her ruby eyes. The smile she adorned when she saw them stood in stark contrast to her tired look as she waved them over by the bus stop.

"You're not looking so good," was the first thing Cloud greeted her with as she jokingly scowled at him. He reached a finger to pull out some of the strands of hair that was unknowingly clamped in her mouth. "You look like a mess. What did you do over the weekend I didn't see you?"

"One month into the semester means countless of hours of sleep lost just to cram projects."

"Are you sure we're taking the same classes?" Cloud mused as he passed by her side to sit down on one of the empty seats. The two females joined him. "We're the same major, but you're making it look like we're aren't."

"It's because you actually get your things done super quick," groaned Tifa as she rubbed the side of her head with a palm. "I take forever since I want everything to be perfect, you know?"

"Nothing's perfect in life," Cloud rolled his eyes. Tifa jabbed him in the side for his pessimistic comment before she giggled.

"Spoken like a true stoic."

When the three of them got dropped off at the stop nearest to campus, Cloud wondered why it had to be so close to the flower café as he sighed and braced himself to walk past it. Today was a Monday—she shouldn't be working according to Zack's apparently-trusty intel. So, when the three of them passed by, he silently exhaled out of relief when there were no signs of her and relaxed.

"What's with you? You look like you just avoided landmines," Jessie asked, but Cloud knew she was all too aware of the reason. "Avoiding a certain place now, aren't 'cha?"

"Just shut up," he simply said as he walked off ahead of the two girls, earning giggles of mischief from them.

Instead of the library, the three of them settled to appreciate the cool, spring weather outside the food court. Cloud never studied outside because of how noisy and uncomfortable and windy it could be, but because most of his work was on the laptop today, he humored the two ladies as they found a table underneath a large tree for shade.

"Are you up for any drinks? Both of you look like you need it." Jessie remarked as she took in Tifa's tired expression and Cloud's sleepy one. "It's not all about the nightlife, you know."

"You talk as if you actually sleep," he looked over at Tifa while jerking a thumb over to Jessie, "I see this idiot still up at eight a.m. when I wake up to go to class. At least I don't resort to energy drinks that often. For her, it's practically water now."

"You're _really_ annoying, do you know that?"

Tifa burst into laughing, taking the two away from each other's death glares as they both shot the raven-haired strange looks.

"Aw, you guys are so cute," she cooed teasingly as she witnessed the two's fire-and-ice dynamic. "If you told me you guys only met last semester when Jessie and Biggs moved in, I wouldn't believe you. It's like you guys have known each other since forever! And I'm the one who's the childhood friend here."

"It's hard to act civil when you're living with an actual lunatic," muttered Cloud as he took out his laptop and opened it. "The moment she left the oven on the entire night by accident on the second day of move-in, I knew we weren't ever going to get along."

"If I had known that he was such a nagger, Biggs and I would've just looked the other way and found another apartment to live at," Jessie sneered back, but she erupted into laughs as she affectionately clapped Cloud on the back, who immediately backed away out of her touch. "I don't know how you've stayed with this guy for so long and not get sick of his mouth."

"He's just a big, sweet softie inside, right?" Tifa said knowingly as she took her turn at patting him on the shoulder too.

"Are we here to study or bully me?" Cloud shoved both of their hands off as he moved to sit next to Tifa instead of just being in the center; he wasn't going to catch any peace if he stayed in between the two. "Where's Biggs when I need him?"

"He's at a seminar right now. Some hotshot politician is here as a guest, so it's right up his alley," answered Jessie as she stopped fooling around and took out her papers. "Plus, he doesn't do well in study groups; says there are too many distractions."

"I'm looking at one right now."

"Can you just shut _up?_ "

Tifa shook her head in amusement as she scrolled through her laptop, easing herself into the studying mood. Eventually, everyone stopped talking minus a few questions here and there as they all got into their work. This was the only reason why Cloud even accepted the invite to study; despite being a bunch of giggling girls, Jessie knew when to shut up (surprisingly) while Tifa was already quite studious herself. If not, then he wouldn't even bother.

Spring time offered the perfect weather—minus the allergies—as the sun shined enough not to scorch anyone's skin, but warm enough to not get any arm hairs to stand up. Cloud tuned out all the bustling noises of people walking by the food court and the chattering next to them in the adjacent tables as he scrolled lazily through a study guide for his exercise physiology class. While his work wasn't optimal in a loud setting, this was a lot better than the coffee-flower shop, where the noise drowned out all of his concentration. At least Zack had the power of love to drive him through all of the distractions; Cloud only had his sanity.

Very glad that he was able to get five days of bliss before he had his butt dragged by Zack over to the flower café again tomorrow, Cloud wish he hadn't spoken so soon. Perhaps then he wouldn't have jinxed himself and gotten involved in something he swore he would avoid at all costs.

When he looked away from his phone to continue looking through his study guide, his eyes spotted an all too familiar figure from behind his screen. He instinctively ducked his head down behind the laptop, causing Tifa and Jessie to look at him oddly as they wondered what was wrong.

"Something the matter?" Tifa asked, eyebrow perked up at his suspicious behavior.

"I'm avoiding someone. Can it be anymore obvious?" he grumbled as he placed a hand over his forehead. With eyes peeking out from above his laptop, he watched as Aerith passed by the quad that separated the food court from the bookstore with a cup of coffee in her hands. However, what he didn't expect to see was a very deep frown bent on her forehead, something he never saw from the always-smiling barista. Wondering what was upsetting her, he looked around her, only to spot someone he wished he didn't see trailing right behind her.

The stalker.

_Why the fuck?_

"You've got to be kidding me," Cloud groaned for the nth time that day as rubbed his two hands on his face, not amused by what kind of twists of fate kept making them bump into each other like this. He let out a hefty sigh as he placed his chin onto his palm, eyes never leaving the two as he stayed back to observe a little bit more.

 _Don't get involved, Cloud Strife, or else you're just going to get into a mess you never asked for_ , he told himself as he watched Aerith stop in her tracks and turn around to face the creep. _What are you doing, keep freaking walking._ He saw the way her mouth moved as she communicated with him, a small, forced smile on her lips as she treated him cordially, as if that was going to work. The creep had his hands clasped together as his eyes trained onto the ground. It was as if he couldn't dare to look her in the eye as she spoke to him.

 _Looks like she got it under control_ , Cloud relaxed as he saw the way the guy backed away from her a little bit in what almost seemed like shame. However, things took a different route when he suddenly reached out to grab onto her wrist instead, causing her to jump in shock and spill her coffee all over the ground.

"Oof, what's going on over there?" Jessie asked as she followed Cloud's gaze and watched the same scene.

"Don't ask me," Cloud continued to play dumb as he reached a hand out for his phone. He wanted to text Zack so that he could actually show a cooler side of himself and save her, but there was no way he was going to make it in time.

_Don't get involved, don't get involved, don't get involved ._

…

"Ah, fuck it."

Sadly, Cloud Strife had the bad habit of just voluntarily wedging himself into uncomfortable situations.

"Cloud?"

Tifa and Jessie sat back as the blond stood up and casually walked over to the two, making sure not to stir up a scene by just running over. The closer he got, the more obvious the discomfort on her face was.

"Excuse me, sir, but if you keep following me like this, then I'm afraid I'm not going to be okay with it," Aerith tried to speak politely. Her spilled coffee was quickly forgotten as her other hand tried to pull his off, but it was a bit tighter than she expected as his lips quivered slightly.

"But I just wanted to—"

"Is there a problem here?"

Aerith quietly gasped when she felt an arm wrap around her shoulders and pull her away from the guy; it did the trick to get the stalker's hands off of her. Snapping her head over, Aerith widened her eyes when she recognized Cloud, who had the most bored expression ever—he did _not_ look like he wanted to be here. However, to the stalker, the blond seemed intimidating and even frightening as he bore his sapphire eyes into his in severe question.

Re-enacting their display from Thursday night, Cloud brought Aerith closer to him as she eyed the hand on her shoulder, which was willing this time as it gripped her firmly.

"It's you again," the stalker mumbled. He took another step back so that there was a good distance between them now. "I-I wasn't trying to create a problem or anything."

"Then?" Cloud deadpanned. He stuffed his other hand in his pocket, wondering when the guy would scram already now that he was here. With the spilled coffee on the ground, they were beginning to attract looks as the man struggled for an explanation.

"I just wanted to talk to her and get to know her better, is all," he explained, but Cloud scoffed at this poor excuse. With everything he had been doing for apparently a month, this didn't look like just friendly chatter.

"Does following her all the way here to her college the way to go?"

"… Are you her boyfriend?"

At this assumption, Cloud's eye twitched violently because _no_ , he was most definitely not her partner in any way because she was already on-hold for his best friend Zack. He had no interest in her whatsoever either and was only here because he just _had_ to interfere the other day without even thinking, so now, he was paying the consequences of it as he got sucked into this pretend play.

… was what he wanted to say to correct the stalker, but that obviously would've made everything backfire.

Before he could say something in response to make their act at least a little bit more believable, the stalker suddenly bowed his head forth in apology.

"I didn't know she had a boyfriend. I'm sorry, I just really wanted to get to know her more since she's really nice and everything. I even tried flirting with her, but I guess I did it all wrong."

" _Flirting?_ " Cloud exasperated, at disbelief because grabbing her wrist all over while she was working was _not_ romantic, to say the least. However, the guy seemed genuine in his actions as he nodded shamefully.

"I watched a lot of videos on how to do it. Like, flirting behind the counter at work, waiting for her to finish, that sort of stuff."

"…"

"So, I thought we could've gone out for some lunch here on this campus since I also work here, but if she already has a boyfriend… then I'm sorry. I didn't know."

At lost for words, Cloud didn't think he would be dealing with someone whose socializing skills were even worse than his, so when the guy finished explaining himself, the blond just shooed him off with a weak hand.

"Just… go."

"Will do. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable, Aerith."

"It's fine if it's all just a misunderstanding," she finally said after a while. She managed a small smile towards his way as she gave him a friendly wave goodbye. "Please don't follow me around like that though. If you want to talk, just… approach me normally and I'll be glad to entertain you."

"Ah, it's okay now. Wouldn't want to upset your boyfriend. I'll… see you around."

And the "stalker" left.

When he was gone from sight, Cloud immediately lifted his arm up and retracted it away from her, a huge sigh escaping his lips as he crossed his arms and gave her a severely disapproving look. Turning around to fully face him, she flashed a bright smile at him, one that he did not return.

"Thank you. I didn't know what perfect timing was until you showed up!" she said cheerily as she re-shouldered her bag. "I was going to be in quite a pickle if you didn't swoop in to save the day."

"He's harmless, huh?" His eyebrows bent together in a small frown. "Why didn't you report him? The school acts fast when this sort of thing happens. You seriously don't have a sense for danger, do you?" Zack's girl had a couple of screws loose, it seemed.

"He is harmless," Aerith tried to argue. "I just didn't want to attach a label on him."

"Label?" Cloud had a hard time understanding her reasons as he stared her down. She laughed nervously as she felt her braid over her shoulder, trying to find the words to say so that he could get it.

"I didn't want to report because then something small would blow up into something big and damage his reputation and stuff, you know? I didn't want him to potentially get into trouble with work and his family or anything if I ever put in a report, so…"

Cloud's mouth parted a bit in astonishment, not expecting such a kind reason behind her actions—or, rather lack of. His shoulders loosened up a bit from their unintentionally-tense state as his hard gaze softened. "You're too nice."

"Am I? Haha, I don't think so. But see, I was right! The guy just… needs a little bit more help in talking to people. Otherwise, he's completely fine!"

"He _followed_ you onto campus though."

"He just said he worked here."

"Well, what if he was lying?"

"Then it still would've been fine," assured Aerith. Unfortunately for her, Cloud was not convinced. "I was just kidding when I said I was in a pickle. If he had done anything funny, then I would've judo-flipped him."

"You would've _what?_ "

"Want a demonstration?"

"No, I don—"

He didn't even ask for one, yet she reached out to grab onto his arm anyway, spun around, and nearly heaved him over her shoulder if she hadn't stopped midway with her flip.

"See?" she giggled, but her laughter halted when she let him go and saw what his stony eyes were looking at so intensely on the ground. What started off as something harmless became something greater as Cloud looked at his white, now coffee-stained shoes. A blank expression adorned his face as he blinked at the puddle of coffee she made him step into. Her mouth formed the shape of an "o" as she gawked at what she did before she immediately shot him a very apologetic look.

"I said the coffee was on me, but I didn't mean it this way," she said as she instantly squatted down and rummaged through her bag for napkins. "Gosh, these shoes look expensive, I'm _so_ sorry. I got a little bit carried way, holy moly."

"Wait, it's okay," Cloud insisted as he bent down with her and tried to stop her from wiping at his shoes, but she resisted him as she threw her entire reserve of napkins at his feet in an attempt to soak up the mess. "It's fine, really."

"No, it's not. Man, I'm always giving you trouble, aren't I?" Aerith mumbled as she wiped away the droplets of coffee that splashed onto the tips of his shoes, only to grimace when she saw them leave a trail. "I never meant to get you involved with stalker guy. Now your shoes are ruined!"

"It's fine," and he grabbed onto her wrists and pulled them up and away from the ground. "Everything was an accident. Of course, it wouldn't be okay if you had done it on purpose, but you didn't, so it's fine." He did feel a bit irritated now that he had to clean his shoes _again_ , but it wasn't her fault. Not planning on being an asshole today, he said, "Don't worry about it."

She stopped her movements as she pulled her eyes up to look at him. He didn't understand why she looked so surprised all of a sudden, and he definitely didn't understand why she burst out giggling out of nowhere.

"You sound so mean, but you're actually so nice," she chuckled softly. "I thought you would've scolded me or something, or get super angry, like this!" For emphasis, she put her arms up and held her hands out like cat paws. This nearly got Cloud laughing a little bit as she scratched at him for effect. "After all, that's what people usually do when expensive shoes like these get all ugly."

"You're so weird," he blurted out without thinking, but she embraced it with good humor as she mockingly pushed him by the shoulder. He accepted it by finally letting out his stifled laugher as the two of them continued squatting like a bunch of campers over spilled coffee.

"Weird? Did you just call me weird?" she dramatically feigned offense as she collected all the damp napkins. She scrunched up her face a little bit when she felt her hands get all sticky, but she didn't care too much as he watched her just clump all of it together in her hands. "Well, I won't correct you there. I think I'm pretty weird myself."

"At least you're self-aware."

"Never mind, you _are_ mean!"

Cloud smirked a bit as she pouted, not noticing how his walls were lowering for her despite his earlier promise to himself to not get too involved. He signaled for her to stand up already as he pushed off his knees. Waddling over to the nearest trash can, Aerith freed her hands from the dripping mess before she returned back over to Cloud, who now gauged the damage on his shoes.

"Great," he said underneath his breath as he viewed the bottom and sides of his shoes. They were completely brown. "Today was not the day to wear white shoes."

"Here, I'll make it up to you."

"Oh no, it's oka—"

She opened and closed her palm as she held it out to him. Not understanding what she was beckoning for, he silently gave her a quizzical look. In response, she darted her eyes towards his pocket before landing them back on him.

"Phone."

"… Why?" Nonetheless, he fished his phone out. Before he could question her a second time, she took it out of his hands as she held out her own. With her rapidly fast thumbs, she worked on both of them before she grinned and handed it back to him. Being a bit slow, Cloud didn't realize what she just did until he glanced at the screen.

_Aerith(:_

"Is this your number?" he spluttered, eyeing the digits as if they were poisonous to his phone. She giggled loudly at his reaction.

"No, it's my home address," she said sarcastically, but that didn't make it any better as he fought down the urge to delete it and pretend he never saw it. She waved her own phone victoriously in front of his face as her eyes twinkled mischievously. "And this is yours. Book yourself a dry-cleaning session and I'll pay for it."

"I already said that it was fine," he tried to argue but his efforts were futile as she shushed him with a finger hovering above his lips.

"You're not changing my mind about this one. Charge me later, alright? Or else I'll be really mad." And the wink she flashed him got his heart painfully skipping a beat.

_Oh no, no, no._

_No._

_**No.** _

_Zack, where the fuck are you?_

Finally remembering his declaration to stay far away from her whenever he wasn't with Zack, he unnaturally took a step back away, but doing so only made him step in the puddle of coffee again. Getting his shoes terribly wet with the brown liquid once more, he groaned as he temporarily marked the cement with his wet, caffeinated footprints.

"Don't text or call me because I'm not going to answer," he tried to say coldly, but it was hardly convincing with how his voice cracked a bit at the end. This only made her laugh even harder.

"Have it your way. But let me at least pay for the cleaning fee, okay? And the offer for the cup of coffee still stands. It won't be at your feet this time though."

Before he could reject her offer, something he failed to do last time on the bus, she waltzed off, leaving him dumbstruck as his eyes watched her back shrink. Once she was gone, he ran a hand through his hair in irritation before he made his way back over to his table. Of course, the coy smiles he received from Tifa and Jessie were unavoidable as he sat back down and trained his eyes back onto his laptop.

"So?" Jessie nudged him by the arm with her elbow as her eyebrows wiggled suggestively. "Who was that girl you were just talking to?"

"No one," he answered dryly. He should've come up with a more convincing answer when he had the chance because now, there was no stopping the overflowing dam of questions.

"No one, huh?" Tifa wrapped her arms around his shoulders as she pulled him close, re-enacting what she had witnessed as she squished him in a near headlock. "She seemed pretty close to you despite being a nobody."

"I do not appreciate this rough treatment, so let go of me," Cloud growled at Tifa, but the strong woman didn't show any signs of letting go until she got the answers she wanted. To make Tifa regret her choice in trapping him, he purposely leaned his full weight against her, testing how long she would last as he glared at Jessie. "Before you start thinking wrong ideas, that girl you saw is the one who has been giving me a headache the past week."

"Who?"

"Zack's crush."

Tifa instantly let him go, and it wasn't because of his revenge. She shared a look with Jessie, who gave her one back before she spoke. "That was Zack's girl?"

"Yes," he mumbled.

"Um…"

"… What?"

Clueless, Cloud was lost as Tifa's and Jessie's playful smile disappeared, only to be replaced with a small, uncertain frown.

"So, like," Jessie began, voice suddenly cautious as she framed her words carefully. "Does Zack know you're, like, talking to her like this?"

"We've only talked to each other like two times. Today was the second, so no, he doesn't. It doesn't matter anyway," he waved off carelessly as he returned to scrolling through his study guide. "I was only helping her out with something. Otherwise, we wouldn't be talking."

"Uh, you don't see it?" Tifa winced as she asked the question.

Cloud let out an exasperated sigh, not understanding where these seemingly random questions were coming from. "See what?"

"Nothing, nothing."

"Let's get back to studying, shall we? I've had enough excitement for today," and Cloud left everything behind him as he focused on preparing for his upcoming exam.

He didn't notice how Tifa and Jessie continued to share their confused looks with each other before they sunk back into the groove of studying too, not wanting to push the subject any further.

Cloud really didn't see what Tifa and Jessie saw from that short moment of interaction.

Zack's girl already had her eyes set on someone, and it wasn't him.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yaaaay another chapter (perhaps the last "quick" one since I'm going to get super busy soon!) Nothing much to say except lmao comments from both FF and AO3 got me motivated AGAIN to produce another chapter, so here you guys go! Thanks for all the love, and I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! (I am a bit insecure with how things are going with this fic so lmao sorry if it's not going good after this xDDD)
> 
> Without further ado, here ya go! Enjoy~

"Tifa." Cloud sucked in a breath as he prepared himself to say the cursed word. It was a word he didn't say often, but desperate times called for desperate measures, along with some persuasion through bribery. "… _Please._ Can you just, like, come with me? At least for today? I'll pay for your dinner tonight. _Please_."

He said it _two_ times—she couldn't possibly reject him now.

"Two dinners," she bargained as she held up two fingers.

"Hell no, do you think my wallet is—"

"Deal's off then."

"Okay, _fine,_ two. I'll throw in a goddamn drink to secure the deal," Cloud caved, but the scowl on his face never went away as they walked through the interiors of their large campus and towards Coffee & Flowers. It was a Tuesday, and that only meant one thing.

Torture. And lots of it. Along with a lot of second-hand embarrassment.

Of course, this time, he had someone to share it with as he finally won Tifa over, albeit with some difficulty and a loss of finance, but everything was worth it if it meant that he wouldn't be crippling alone while he witnessed Zack lose brain cells every time he glanced over at Aerith to steal a glimpse. It had been a blissful six days without stepping foot into the allergy festival, but all good things had to come to an end, and that end was coming in ten minutes.

"I bet you're just exaggerating about Zack. You're making him sound so dumb," Tifa mused. "Even though he doesn't hang out with our group often, I've seen him enough to know that he's much cooler than you."

"That doesn't say much since I'm not trying to be anyway," Cloud grumbled. He grumpily kicked a rock, watching it land in the middle of the street as they crossed it. When they saw the flower café just down the sidewalk, Cloud started to walk slower. If he walked slower, then he wouldn't have to get there so quick. However, Tifa wasn't on the same wavelength as him as she laughed and hooked her arm with his.

"You're _so_ dramatic. Let's go see already, I'm curious!" and she dragged him, making his intended ten-minute walk shorten to just five.

"Cloud! And Tifa too, nice!" Zack greeted happily from the front door of the coffee-flower shop. He pushed his back off of the wall as he turned to face the two, smile up and big on his face. "What got you to come along too?"

"Cloud told me you got a show for me to watch," grinned Tifa. "I've come to see it."

"Did you tell Tifa about my, you know, yeah?" Zack asked, but he didn't sound upset as he blushed a little bit in embarrassment. "I thought it was only between us two, man."

"I don't know what you expected," Cloud rolled his eyes as he took the initiative and opened the door. Instantly, the familiar scent of coffee and flowers wafted underneath his nose, already giving him a feeling similar to trauma as he propped it open with a foot. "Whatever you tell me gets to her, whether I want it to or not."

"Two peas in a pod, I should've known," Zack mockingly shook his head before his smile popped right back up, not at all minding the extra company they had with them today. "Don't laugh at me too much, Tifa. My heart is undergoing a very fragile stage right now—it can break anytime!"

"Oh, haha," Tifa laughed nervously. She glanced over at Cloud, who was completely oblivious to her looks as he gave them impatient glares for not getting in already. "I sure hope that doesn't happen any time soon."

"Naw, I don't think so." The moment Zack stepped foot into the shop, his posture suddenly became straight as his chest puffed out, immediately causing Tifa to snort in stifled laughter. Cloud gave her the "I told you" look as she followed Zack through door before the blond closed it. Right before they entered Aerith's view, Zack turned around one last time and silently asked if his hair was okay by pointing to it and giving a thumbs up in question. Cloud nearly gave him the middle finger instead, but he held back the urge before he simply sighed and shooed him on with a hand. Running his palm over his forehead to slick back his hair, Zack grinned before he marched forth.

"Hey, Aerith!"

"It begins—the corniness," Cloud muttered as he joined the line right behind Zack. Since it was only one p.m., not a lot of people were at the shop; it usually got booked by the time the evening hit when everyone was freer. Avoiding Aerith's face entirely, Cloud looked around the shop as Tifa observed it in admiration while Zack hit it off with Aerith by the counter.

"This is a really cute shop. Why haven't I visited sooner?"

"You'd visit it alone because I would never come here voluntarily. I don't think Jessie's the type to hang around here either because she's a total drunkard," Cloud scoffed. "There's only two things she'll drink: energy drinks and alcohol. Can't convince her with anything else."

"Seems like you've had quite a fun time with her and her drinking," Tifa laughed, already knowing all the horror stories from Cloud, Biggs, and Barret. "The party's never complete without the crazy one, right?"

"Come join our drinking nights one day and you'll instantly take back your words."

"Sounds like a bet." Tifa stopped their conversation as she eyed the menu, poking an eyebrow up as she saw the order with flowers. "That's a really cute concept, pairing a drink with a flower. Really nice spot to take someone out on a date too, don't you think? Hey," she jabbed him in the stomach with an elbow as she gave him a teasing smile, "why don't you take me someday?"

"Sorry, I don't take family members out on dates."

"Wow," Tifa rolled her eyes, already expecting that kind of response from the stoic before she discreetly pointed to the menu. "I want the most expensive drink here. Ooo, I'm definitely feeling that extra-large caramel frappuccino right now with the red rose."

"Get a boyfriend already instead of leeching my card dry," Cloud snorted, but he nonetheless wrote her order down in his head as he took out his wallet. Together, the two ceased their chatter so that they could tune in to Zack's conversation with the barista.

"You're really working hard, aren't you, Aerith?" Zack praised as he went through his bills to take out the right amount. "Juggling a part-time job along with being a pre-med student. I don't think I could do that."

"Haha, it's actually not too bad," she assured as she took his money. She punched the amount on the tablet before the register clicked open for the change. "It is quite busy, but being focused and stuff really helps! If you ever need study tips, let me know. It's hard to gather concentration when you unknowingly surround yourself with distractions!"

"Oh, definitely, I sure will hit you up. My concentration is terrible when the night gets late." At this, Cloud tried not to facepalm. Zack was one of _the_ most studious guys he had ever met despite being a frat boy and everything. Always having his shit together along with a healthy sleep schedule, Zack was the complete opposite of the image he was currently trying to conjure up for Aerith. While the blond understood that he was just trying to get more reasons to talk with the barista, it didn't hurt to be a little bit more… _real._

_I like someone who is down-to-earth._ _**Real** _ _. You get me?_

"Ah, that's right," Cloud said out loud to himself. He had forgotten to tell Zack what kind of guys the girl liked. Not wanting his wingman efforts to be in vain, he made sure to tell him later once they all sat down.

"Ey, Cloud," Zack tapped him by the side of the arm once he finished his order. "I'll be over at that table over there."

"Gotcha."

When Cloud moved forward in the line, he finally looked up at her just for the sake of politeness. When she gave him a warm smile, he looked away, not wanting to appear acquainted with her when he was in front of Zack.

"I'll have a medium, iced green tea, please," he said curtly, not wanting to be caffeinated for no reason. "And a large caramel frappucino."

" _Extra_ -large," Tifa corrected him as she teasingly scrunched her face at him.

"Fine, extra-large."

"Sir, with a red rose, hello?"

"With a red rose," Cloud tore his eyes away from the cash register just to shoot Tifa a glare. In response, she gave him a mockingly-sweet smile.

"Coming right up," Aerith said cheerfully as she put in his order. Just when he thought he was done so that he could make his escape out of there, she added, "What's with the tea again? Do you like it that much? I still owe you a cup of coffee, remember?"

"No, thanks," he grumbled as he whipped out his card. He kept his sentences short as he handed her the card. "I'm not really feeling the coffee right now."

"C'mon," Aerith insisted, but she took his card anyway and inserted it into the chip reader. "You can't keep coming here without trying our coffee." While Cloud didn't really see it, Tifa did as she saw the way Aerith's smile faltered a bit at the blond's lacking interaction with her. "It's a lot better than the library coffee, I assure you."

"Maybe some other time," and he gave a firm nod towards Aerith's direction to finish it all up before he left the counter with Tifa.

"Hey, don't you think you were a little bit too cold?" Tifa asked once they were out of Aerith's earshot, hands behind her back as she leaned forward a bit to look him in the eye. "You were being a bit rude, you know."

He gave her a curious look. "Was I?" He hadn't really paid attention to how had he acted, although he did speak in clipped phrases on purpose just so that Zack wouldn't wonder how they knew each other enough to strike a conversation over the register. "I didn't mean to. I just… didn't want to talk to her right there and then."

"Hm, I see."

"It's whatever," and he took his seat across from Zack as Tifa sat next to him.

"Guys, I think these trips to her workplace are really working," Zack declared excitedly as his eyes shined with hope. "There's some progress, I think."

Cloud rested his chin on his palm, bored expression clear on his face as he shot Zack a quizzical look. "Oh, really? Is anything even different? I'm just seeing the same fool acting like a middle schooler with his first love every single time."

"Okay, now look here," Zack jokingly threatened, "I'm sorry that I look a bit unnatural sometimes—"

"You mean all the time."

"—but it's because I'm actually trying to get her and stuff! Listen, listen. I really think she's starting to get interested."

"Because?"

"Because the other day," Zack paused to lick his lips as he tried to add some suspense behind his words, "guess what she did?"

Cloud pinched the bridge of his nose, already feeling something stupid coming. "What did she do?"

"She initiated our conversation online for the first time!"

Just when Cloud was about to give the guy a half-baked congratulations, Zack ruined it by saying, "She was asking me for help for one of her business classes, since she's a business minor and everything."

Cloud remained silent for a second because he thought Zack was going to say more, but when nothing followed, his fingers immediately flew to his temple so that he could rub the disappointment away. Tifa only laughed as she repeatedly patted Cloud's shoulder as a way to vent it all out.

"I don't know whether or not I should congratulate you or just feel sorry," Cloud said dryly. The pity he felt for his friend was too much. If he was getting this excited just to receive a message for assistance in school work, then he couldn't imagine how slow his friend's progress truly was with the barista.

"Bro, of course, you should congratulate me!" Zack exclaimed indignantly. "She would only ask me for help because she thinks I'm reliable, right?"

"… I think that's kind of overshooting it, but sure," Cloud grimaced. "Is that it? How are your usual conversations with her?"

"Hm, I think it's going pretty smoothly," he nodded confidently. "We talk about each other's day, you know? I mean," he rubbed a finger underneath his nose as he cleared his throat a little bit, "I get left on read sometimes from time to time, but it's no biggie!"

"… Give me your phone."

Wordlessly, Zack gave it over to him, and Cloud took the liberty to go over to his text messages with Aerith. Even without reading the contents of them, Cloud instantly tossed it back to the guy, not wanting to witness any further sadness by going in any deeper.

"Dude, the disproportionate amount of messages sent between you two is absolutely atrocious," Cloud blatantly stated. "It's literally eighty-percent you and twenty-percent her, like give her some air."

"Cloud, you're killing me," Tifa laughed into the table as she slapped a hand onto the table repeatedly. "Sorry Zack, I'm not laughing at you. I've just never heard Cloud spit so much fire in one sitting before."

"Don't worry, I'm used to it," Zack said as he dramatically wiped an imaginary tear away. Nevertheless, his smile never disappeared as he laughed with Tifa. "What can I say, I'm just too excited to talk to her that I get a little bit carried away. She's also a really busy person considering the schedule she told me about, so I don't hold anything against her. It's a lot better than when we first started out though; I wouldn't know when she would reply, but now she does regularly now!"

Remembering to tell him the valuable information he had obtained, Cloud decided to bring it up now. "Zack, do you even know what her type is?"

"No, I don't," Zack leaned forward in the table, ears perked as he saw the look of knowledge on his best friend's face. "What is it?"

"One, she likes someone who is not flashy, so stop puffing your chest out like some sort of kid trying to get taller during a physical examination," he sighed as he held up one finger. Then he pulled up another. "Two, she likes someone who's genuine and real." Zack nodded excitedly as he listened intently to Cloud's words of wisdom. "And three…"

_I would like someone nice of course. But I wouldn't mind if he was… a bit boring._

Cloud furrowed his eyebrows. Not understanding that one, he decided to just leave it out. "No, that's it. So _please_ , for the love of those who have to witness your cheesy acts, just act normal."

"I'm trying! But wow, thanks for the informa—wait," Zack blinked twice as he processed the entire thing in his head. "How do you know all of this?"

"Uh," Cloud let out dumbly, quickly coming up with a believable response. "I just figured. Girls like that stuff, right?"

"Haha, you right!" Zack gullibly believed him as all suspicions dropped. However, knowing Cloud, Tifa simply rolled her eyes as she saw right through his lie. "Hey, you _do_ have a knack at this romancing business, Cloud! Why haven't you gotten a girlfriend after all these years in college?"

"Can't really do that when every girl is scared by this person over here," and Cloud jerked a thumb over to Tifa, causing her to giggle as he heaved another sigh. "If I want a girlfriend, then this person has to go."

"Aw, so you've been picking your friendship with Tifa over love? Dude, Tifa, you got a true buddy here."

"It's not like that," Cloud denied, although there was some truth to Zack's assumption. It wasn't because he was actively choosing Tifa over any of the girls he could've been potentially interested in before. It was just that every time they saw her, they just got too intimidated and looked away in the other direction. As a result, no one really approached him out of insecurity due to the active presence of such a beautiful woman. "She just scares everyone away."

"You're making me sound like some sort of monster," Tifa snickered. "Thanks a lot."

"Cloud, you're a good-looking guy, and Tifa," Zack gave her a thumbs up, "you're a pretty lady! I think you guys would actually look good together, if you guys think about it."

At his suggestion, Cloud and Tifa immediately shook their heads, irking the guy a little bit as Cloud waved a hand to shut down any kind of funny ideas.

"I've known her for way too long," Cloud explained. " _Way_ too long."

"Before we even went to kindergarten together," Tifa nodded as she added some more detail.

"I mean, Tifa's… _pretty_ ," Cloud felt a bit weird actually saying that to his childhood friend, but he quickly followed it up with, "but no. What's that effect called again? Ah, that's right. The Westermarck Effect."

"Okay, flex your trivia knowledge," Tifa teased.

"It explains the reason why siblings don't fall in love with each other. I mean, we're not siblings, but the idea behind it still stands."

"What he said," Tifa grinned.

"Okay, okay, I get it. Damn, you guys sure got defensive," Zack whistled, amused at how quick his two friends responded; they probably had this topic brought up many times with their previous friends before. "But for real, though. Cloud, if you're ever interested in a girl, just let me know, and I'll do my best to wingman for you as repayment for what you've been doing for me!"

"Sure," Cloud snorted. "But I don't think—"

_Crash!_

"Aerith, are you okay?"

All three of them turned to look towards the front counter to see what had happened. They saw the way Aerith cradled her hand as spilled water touched her shoes. One of her co-workers went over to her side to examine her hand, which now burned red; she had spilled hot water on herself by accident.

"Oh, shoot. Aerith, are you alright?" Zack said loudly from their table out of concern. Looking up from the mess, Aerith shot them a sheepish smile as she nodded.

"Just a minor spill, nothing to worry about!" she assured, and her attention was quick to move back towards the mess as her co-worker helped by throwing a rag down onto the floor to clean it up.

"Are you sure?"

"Yup!"

"Barista work sure has it tough sometimes, doesn't it?" Zack noted as they all settled back down in their seats. "I heard burns are a common thing. That sucks."

"Yeah," Cloud said absentmindedly, watching as everything got cleaned up. He noticed that once the mess was dealt with, Aerith quickly returned back to work as she took the order from the waiting customer in line. She didn't tend to her burn at all. Clicking his tongue quietly in mild disapproval, he crossed his arms as he sat back into his seat.

"Shoot, our drinks have been waiting for a while. Haha, we were too busy talking! Let me go get it," and Zack pushed his chair in as he made his way over to fetch their drinks.

In the brief moment Zack was absent, Tifa zoned in on Cloud immediately. "I have a question for you, Cloud."

"What?" he asked, not liking it whenever Tifa asked him questions. She usually dug into topics that made him uncomfortable, but since they were always reasonable ones, he tuned his ear in to listen.

"Now that I've seen it with my own two eyes, I finally understand what you mean when you say Zack's completely whipped."

"Was never lying."

"But," Tifa removed the scrunchie from her wrist so that she could put her long hair up in a ponytail, "I feel like you have to make sure of something if you want to keep helping out Zack."

"… And what's that?"

"You're not going to meet with her again, right? Without Zack."

Vexed, Cloud frowned at her, not understanding why she was saying this all of a sudden. Plus, wasn't it obvious? He had no reasons to meet nor talk to her anyway. "Of course not. Why would I?"

"You're so blind, aren't you?" Tifa let out a _tsk_ as she shook her head in mock disappointment. Cloud still didn't understand her, but she didn't explain as she gave him a nod of approval. "Good. I wouldn't want things to be messy between you two."

"… Right." Not feeling the energy to probe more about what she meant and why she was telling him this, Cloud left it at that. Seeing her struggle to put her hair in a nice, neat ponytail, he signaled a hand towards her scrunchie, which she happily handed over to him.

"This is the problem with thick hair," she sighed as she turned in her chair to face her back towards Cloud. "It's so hard to tie everything neatly without feeling like my arms will fall off. Do you know how many hair ties I'm broken before? I have too much hair!"

"I'm telling you, just chop all of it off already," Cloud advised as he ran his fingers down the length of her hair just to smooth and even it out. He collected it all in one bundle before he lifted it up and looped it through the scrunchie. "I don't understand girls. They complain about how long and how unkept their hair is, but they never cut it. Just do yourselves a favor and keep it short. Maybe then you wouldn't have to keep killing poor hair ties."

"Hey, even if it's a bother to take care of, long hair is nice!" Tifa argued.

"Short hair is nice too."

Cloud grimaced a bit when he tried to loop her hair a second time. Because her hair was so thick and silky and just plain _long_ , he had a hard time putting it through the scrunchie without her ponytail getting lopsided on her head or strands just sticking out randomly. When he finally secured it through the third loop, he gave it a final tightening before he let his already-tired arms fall. Turning back to face him, Tifa smiled in appreciation before she gave him a thumbs up.

"I give it a B+!"

"I seriously need to get a pay raise from the both of you."

"I swear, you guys are so close, I wouldn't be surprised if anyone thought you two were dating."

Zack came back with their drinks. Tifa squealed in delight at the extra-large frappucino in her hands as Cloud relished the cold of the iced tea in his hands. Looking at Zack's cup in apprehension, Cloud shot him a dubious look, one that the raven-haired understood immediately as he shook his head.

"It doesn't have milk this time, trust," he assured. "I won't be running to the bathroom like last time."

"This guy can't drink coffee either. We have to cover for him," Cloud informed Tifa as she twirled the red rose in her hand. "So that his crush won't see him and think he's just choking to death."

"Hey, I'm getting better, okay?"

With drinks now in their possessions, the three of them did what they were supposed to during testing season and took out their books and laptops. Despite Zack's constant insistence that he did not have good studying skills in front of Aerith, he was the first one to tune all of his surroundings out as he got his work done. The coffee-flower shop slowly started to fill with people as classes finished up and evening settled. Tifa kept distracting Cloud by just laughing whenever Zack took a sip out of his coffee and said hello to death every time. With his sanity close to gone now, Cloud ran his two hands through his hair and clutched it as he muttered a mantra to bring it back just so that he could last the rest of the day.

_Once Zack gets the girl, you're going to be done, Cloud Strife. You really will be, so look forward to that day._

When they had stayed there for a good three hours, Zack decided to call it a day.

"As always, Cloud, thanks for keeping me company," Zack said happily as he zipped up his backpack. "And you too, Tifa. Having a third person really gets the party going!"

"And thank you for giving me such a nice show," Tifa chuckled as she eyed the now-empty cup of coffee in his hands. "I'll come by again if Cloud continues to pay for my dinner."

"Don't count on it," Cloud growled as he put everything away as well. While Tifa finished up her things and packed her laptop, his eyes momentarily trailed over to Aerith. The whole entire day she had continued to work, despite her burned hand; not once did he ever see her take a break and tend to it. Leaving him with no choice, he signaled for Zack to come over, piquing his curiosity.

"What's up?"

"Here," Cloud took out an instant cold pack from the smaller pocket of his backpack and discreetly gave it to Zack. "Give this to her."

"You mean Aerith?"

"Who else do you think I'm talking about?" Cloud sighed as he stood up and swung his backpack over his shoulder. "I have this because I didn't unpack entirely after we went camping the other month. She's been working with her burned hand the entire day. At least look like a nice guy and give it to her, hm?"

"Cloud, you're actually the best," Zack said in amazement as he eyed the instant cold pack in his hands. "And handy!"

"We'll go out first," and Cloud left the store with Tifa close to his side. When he passed by the counter, he didn't turn to look at it as he opened the door for Tifa.

"You're really observant," Tifa noted once they were outside as they waited for Zack. The cool, night air welcomed them as it freshened up their senses from smelling coffee and flowers. "And a really good wingman too. I didn't know you actually had it in you!"

"I'm not cheap. If you ever want to hire me, I expect large sums in return," Cloud said in a monotone. "Plus, it's not me being observant. I'm just paying attention to random things. It's the least I can do when I'm trapped in that shop with him."

"Isn't that the same thing?" she giggled. Cloud never took compliments well, so he always reflected them by trying to water them down. However, to those who knew him well, it never worked. "But Zack did make a point earlier."

"What point?"

"You _are_ pretty good-looking. Why don't you get a girlfriend? And please, I know the real reason isn't because of me."

"I'm just not interested," Cloud responded awkwardly. He was never comfortable anytime someone mentioned his love life—or, rather, lack of—since he wasn't looking for anything like that at the moment. Just surviving college and finding another internship was hard enough; he didn't want to add another fiasco into the mix. "What about you, though? Guys go crazy over you."

"Guys go crazy over me for different reasons," Tifa scoffed, and she waved her hands over her bust, causing Cloud to snort in suppressed laughter. "Too many immature guys around us. I'd rather not waste time with that stuff until we get older and have greater priorities than just, uh, _nightly_ activities."

"You make all of us sound like fiends. I'm sure there are some guys out there who don't care about that stuff too much."

"Yeah, I know, but like you, I got my future to worry about first. But you want to know something, Cloud?"

"What?"

"You're actually kind of my type."

"… Ew."

"I didn't even finish, yet you already took the words out of my mouth," Tifa chortled. "Yup, but since I've known you for too long!" She created an "x" with her arms. "Nope!"

"The feeling's mutual."

"Of course."

When Zack finished handing Aerith the instant cold pack, which she received with an enormous amount of appreciation, he exited out the shop and finalized his goodbyes with Tifa and Cloud.

"Sure you guys don't need a ride? I brought my car again this time," Zack offered as he pointed his thumb over to the parking lot.

Cloud shook his head. "It's fine. The bus isn't that terrible, so."

"Same," Tifa nodded.

"Well, alright then!"

And Zack went on his way as Cloud and Tifa walked towards the bus stop. Their ride back to their respective apartments was silent as the two of them busied themselves with their phones. With the bus packed tight with people, there wasn't much room for conversation unless they wanted to project it to everyone there.

Receiving a text from Zack during his phone scrolling, Cloud clicked on it to check it out.

_Really, thanks for the ice pack. She seemed really happy when I gave it to her, so I really think I scored some points! You're the best wingman ever!1!1!_

"Idiot," Cloud muttered underneath his breath, but he managed a small smile as he typed his reply.

_There's no next time._

Just when he was about to put his phone away, another text came ringing. Impressed that Zack was able to respond so fast right after he just sent his reply, Cloud clicked the message one more time.

_Thanks for the ice pack :)_

His heart leapt up to his throat out of surprise once he realized that the message was _not_ from Zack.

It was from the one and only.

"Ah, shit," he cursed to himself as he ruffled the hair at the back of his head. Seeing his suddenly heightened stress, Tifa looked over at him in wonder.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he said quickly as he angled the phone away from Tifa's view. "I just saw one of my grades pop up," came his quick-thinking lie, but he doubted it would go past Tifa's trained ears. Luckily for him, Tifa didn't push on his suspicious behavior as she nodded and returned back to reading comics on her phone.

Wondering how Aerith knew it was him even though she didn't see his little exchange with Zack, Cloud typed his reply as he felt his heart beat a little bit faster out of this new, sprouted anxiety from being caught red-handed.

_? What are you talking about?_

He decided to play dumb. However, that wasn't really working in his favor either, and he wished he had left her on read instead of actually replying.

_I owe you a cup of coffee, a cleaning fee, and something else now for the ice pack. I have a lot of debt to pay back!_

Cloud huffed an irritated sigh as he found his fingers moving even though he didn't want them to.

_You owe me nothing. So forget it all and stop bugging me about it._

When he pressed the send button, he suddenly felt guilty. The last message seemed a bit harsh, but it was too late to delete it once the read receipt popped up in the bottom right corner. He hadn't meant to say something like that, so when he waited for her reply to somehow soften the impact of his words, it never came. Instead, the sent receipt simply stayed there, unchanged.

 _It's fine,_ he thought to justify himself as he slipped his phone back into his pocket. _She won't text me anymore._

When he arrived back home to his apartment, the guilt disappeared, but little did he know, the peace that he had sought to maintain wasn't going to last any longer.

~.~.~

"No!" Jessie threw down the queen's card as she roughly pushed Biggs by the shoulder, causing him to collapse onto the floor of their living room as his laughter came out as silent huffs of breath. "Damn it, Biggs, how many times do you have to ruin my victory!" She poured herself another drink from the bottle of Vodka and chugged it down, earning a severe look of disapproval from Cloud as he shook his head.

"I've never seen anyone get so mad playing Old Maid before," Cloud scoffed as he collected everyone's cards and shuffled it. "But I shouldn't be surprised considering this is Jessie we're talking about."

"Come here and I'll suffocate you," and she came around behind Cloud to put him in a headlock, one that he had no choice but to accept unless he wanted something worse than a headlock. Zack and Tifa laughed as he struggled to hand everyone their fresh set of cards.

"Are Saturday game nights always like this?" Zack asked as he watched Jessie smack Cloud one more time on his back and head back to sit next to Biggs in their circle. "I thought this was going to be a wholesome, apartment-bonding night, not an all-out war between winners and losers."

"This asshole never stops in being an asshole, so it's hard to remain civil," Barret grumbled as he took his set of cards and spread it in his hand. "Has no tact whatsoever. The night never ends peacefully with him around."

"I do not appreciate this slander," Cloud smirked as he tossed the last card over to Tifa, who took another shot just to entertain Jessie. "It's not me; it's the people who can't handle their drinks very well before they destroy things around here, and guess who cleans up after everybody? Yeah, that's right— _me._ "

"Hey, don't forget about me too," Biggs chuckled as Jessie rested her head on his shoulder. She was starting to lose her sense of balance as the alcohol began to enter her system. He handed her set to her, but not without purposely taking a peek at her cards.

"You bitch," Jessie got off of him as she propped a leg up and kicked him, causing him to howl in more laughter as he clutched his stomach to ease the pain his abs felt.

"She has the queen again, guys! Or does she? Pick wisely, Tifa!"

"Ouch, maybe I _should_ take it out of her hands before she throws another loser's tantrum," Tifa giggled as she waited for Jessie to reposition herself. Cloud threw a pillow from the sofa over to Jessie so that she could use it to lean against the chair since her head was probably spinning out of control. Taking it gratefully, she put it behind her head as she revved herself up.

"It's on!" she let out a battle cry.

"Let's bring it!" Zack joined in with her spirits as he spread his cards out to jokingly cover his face. "These game nights are hella fun! I hope you guys don't mind me bringing my buddies the next time you guys have them!"

"Sure," Cloud chuckled as he started the round by plucking a card from Zack's hand.

All was well, and Cloud thought it would end well too, until his phone started to ring right at his feet.

"Hey, I think someone's calling you," Zack informed him, eyes too busy looking Barret in the eye in order to gauge his reaction as his fingers touched upon every single card. "It's been vibrating."

"Oh shoot, thanks." Lazily, Cloud's eyes glanced down at his phone to see who was calling, and when he saw the name in large, white letters, he instantly dropped his cards and slammed a hand on his phone to cover the screen.

_Aerith(:_

"Dude, are you alright?" Biggs asked, a bit freaked from witnessing his apartment mate's lightning-fast hand just slap his phone. "Chill, it's just a phone call."

"Who is it?" Zack asked, allowing relief to flow through Cloud as the raven-haired remained clueless. Then, his eyes looked down, causing Cloud to cover the entire thing with his palm. However, it wasn't the phone he was looking at. "Wow, Cloud, you're the one who has the queen!"

"Hold on, let me take this," Cloud grumbled as he lifted his phone off the ground with two hands, making sure Zack didn't see the caller ID. "You guys can continue on without me for a bit."

"Come back so that I can beat your ass!" Barret roared as he threw down his cards for Tifa to reshuffle.

Once he was in the safe reclusion of his room, Cloud picked up the call during its last ring and pulled his phone up to his ear. He found phone calls to be important, so even if he didn't want to answer her call, his moral conscience couldn't ignore it lest something bad was happening.

"Hello?" he greeted hesitantly. Immediately, noise from the other side nearly deafened his ear as he winced and retracted the phone away from his face a bit. Knowing the sounds of a party fully well since he was basically Zack's personal taxi driver, he frowned as he tried to get a response one more time. "Hello?"

"Hehe, is this Cloud?" came her familiar voice.

"… Aerith?" He felt so weird the moment her name escaped his lips; this was the first time he ever said it out loud.

"Yes, that's me!" Her wild giggling gave him enough of a signal that she was not okay. "You picked up! I thought you would ignore me if I called."

"Look, if you're just drunk calling me, I'm not exactly comfortable enough to keep you company," he stated, plain and simple. However, he winced for a second time because, again, of how harsh it sounded once he actually went through with his words, but he remained firm with his answer. They barely even knew each other, so they were definitely not in familiar zones to speak to each other like this. However, he didn't blame her too much; alcohol made people do stupid things. Not wanting to just leave her alone, he asked, "Do you need a ride home? I'll call a ride for you."

"Mhm, I don't feel safe just going into a random car when I'm like this," he heard her slur through the phone. "I'm just at a random party right now, but after drinking a little bit, I just want to go home. But then I suddenly wanted to talk to you, so I called you! I have quick thinking, don't I? Ah, but maybe I should've called you after I got home first. Hm, woops."

"…"

Yup, she was not okay.

Not knowing what to do, there was only one option left. "Um, let me get Zack for you. He can pick you up."

"No!" came her instant reply, and it irked him extremely. "I mean, no," she repeated, this time in a softer tone. "I don't want Zack to pick me up. Do you think… you can pick me up?"

"… I'd rather no—"

"Sorry, I'm really annoying, aren't I? Crap, I actually didn't mean to call you actually, but I don't know—my fingers just moved on their own. Even though I know you don't want to talk to me—ugh, I think my mouth is too big right now. Sorry to bother you on your Saturday night, I'll just end the call no—"

"Wait, how are you going to get home?"

"… I'll just walk and catch the night bus."

"Excuse me? Are you not with any friends?"

"They don't want to go home right now, so I don't want to bother them. Maybe I can just ask someone at the party, they seem like nice peop—"

"Forget it," he sighed. His hands were already reaching for the car keys on his desk as he shrugged on a jacket with one arm. "Where's the place?"

"Hm, what do you mean?" she asked, a bit too out of it to understand what he was implying.

"I'm not asking a hard question," he replied curtly. "What's the address?"

"… Are you coming to pick me up?"

"It doesn't seem like I have any other choice."

"Yay!" she yelled excitedly into the phone. She must've been really excited to go home. "I'll be waiting! Now that I know I can go home, I'm going to drink some more. There's some really tasty, expensive things here!"

"Wait, that's not a reason for you to—" before he could finish his sentence, she hung up the phone, leaving him speechless as he pulled his phone away from his ear to stare at it in stupor, "—drink more… God damn it."

Stuffing his keys and phone into his pockets, he now had a troublesome duty to fulfill as he exited his room and re-entered the living room.

"You heading somewhere all of a sudden?" Zack asked when he saw the way Cloud had his jacket on. "This late?"

"Something came up," Cloud muttered as he walked over to the front door and stuffed his feet into his still-stained shoes. "Continue without me. Actually, maybe you should head home soon, you two. It is kind of late."

"Maybe," and everyone returned to play another card game as Cloud left his apartment, wondering why he got dragged into doing something like this.

 _Maybe you are a dumb pushover_ , he mentally scoffed at himself as he locked the door and headed towards the elevator. _A dumb pushover who really can't say no at the end. Damn it._

When Cloud received the address from Aerith through text, he buckled his seatbelt and prepared himself for what was in store for him on his precious Saturday night.


	6. Chapter 6

When Cloud pulled over to the side in front of the house that Aerith had given the address to, he tried not to shift back into the drive gear and just dip. With the GPS taking him over to a frat house with dim lights bleeding out from the windows and music literally vibrating the walls, he hadn't expected that someone as innocent-looking as Aerith would be around these parts; she didn't look like a party animal at all. Perhaps it was this second side to her that shot Zack with the love arrow.

_Ugh._

Getting out to prevent himself from actually leaving (because he would), he leaned on his car as he took his phone out of his pocket.

 _I'm here_ , he texted.

Releasing a long sigh, Cloud put his phone to sleep before he began swinging it between his thumb and index finger like a pendulum. As he waited, he started to think up reasons as to why, out of all the people she could've called, she called for him. The whole thing was strange to him; from her insistence in paying him back to her random drunk calling. Cloud was dumb, but he wasn't _that_ dumb—or, at least, this is what he wanted to believe. Alcohol made people succumb to their impulsiveness, but it also (apparently) made a person more truthful with their desires.

So, why did she call him?

"I need sleep," Cloud muttered to himself as he pinched the bridge of his nose and decided against making his head spin more than it already was. Currently, it was two in the morning, and he really didn't want to screw up the somewhat-decent sleep schedule he had spent the whole week trying to fix, but here he was, fetching some girl he didn't know even existed until two weeks ago. Wishing he had taken some drinks back at his apartment so that he could've had a legitimate excuse not to drive over here, Cloud leaned his side against his car and thumped his head against it repeatedly, all the while reprimanding himself for even bringing himself out here.

_Should've told Zack anyway._

Cloud didn't even have the time to feel guilty when someone finally came out the house.

"Yahoo!"

Cloud turned around, only to bask entirely in Aerith's drunk glory. Shutting the door to the house and instantly muffling the music that boomed from the inside, she wobbled over to the front step as she cautiously put one foot out to feel for the ground before following with the other foot. She stumbled and nearly fell onto the grass of the yard if she hadn't stretched her arms out like wings of an airplane to find her balance. Giggling madly once she was flat on her two feet again, Aerith waved Cloud over with exaggerated arm movements.

"Hi!" She screamed loud enough for the whole neighborhood to hear. "You're really here! Or am I mistaking you for someone I know? Haha, sorry!"

"…"

What did he get himself into?

Not wanting her to get a potential concussion because of her terrible coordination, Cloud took a few strides towards her until they met face-to-face in the middle of the property. Aerith squinted her eyes at his face before she clapped her hands happily, and even the force of that got her tipping over a little bit.

"It is you!" she laughed as she crinkled her eyes joyfully in a smile. "Sorry, I'm a bit out of it—I think I had a little bit too much to drink."

"A little bit? You're completely drunk," he said, disapproval lacing his every word as his hands hovered hesitantly in the air. He didn't know when she would just suddenly collapse. "I told you that I was picking you up. That wasn't a signal for you to drink more."

"It's a Saturday and I finished all my exams," Aerith dismissed as she blinked rapidly to adjust her vision in the dark. "It'd be a real shame if I didn't do what I came here for!"

"You came here to get wasted?" Cloud shot back. Then he shook his head; he wasn't here to spend any more time with her. "Whatever. Just get in the car. I'll drive you home and we'll call it a night."

"Already?" Aerith pouted as she untied the ribbon from her head and shook her hair out of its braid. "It's only midnight! We can party some more—do you want to come in?"

Unfortunately for her, Cloud was not amused.

"It's two in the morning," he deadpanned as he watched her play with her hair. She started to whip it around like helicopter blades. "I thought you said you wanted to go home."

"I did," she confirmed, but her giggling never stopped as she waved the pink ribbon in front of his face. He tried not to swat it away from him. "But now that you're here, things are different!"

"Oh no, they're not," Cloud immediately shut her down as he jerked a thumb over to his car. "Look, I already came out here to pick up someone I don't even know, so if you can stop troubling me, that'd be great."

 _Okay, Cloud Strife, strike three_ , he instantly thought to himself as he mentally cringed. While he had meant every word he said, he wished he had said it a little bit nicer; even he knew when his mouth got out of hand. So, when Aerith's cheerful laughter came to an abrupt halt, he knew that his rough tone hit its target.

"Right. Sorry," she apologized softly. Her erratic movements stilled, but her feet continued to shuffle around a bit against the floor for balance. Tying her hair back into a ponytail with her ribbon, her sudden quietness made him very guilty, and it didn't help that he had been blatantly cold to her two times before.

But now that she was finally standing still, he was able to take in her appearance. Looking very different in casual clothes, Aerith had a full face of natural-looking makeup as her lips colored with pink lipstick and eyes winged with sleek, black liner. Paired with some tightly-fitting jeans, her crop top hugged nicely around her waist as her chest peeked from above the line. Because he wasn't used to seeing her with this type of clothes, Cloud had to look away momentarily so that he wouldn't be caught staring.

"Here." Shrugging off his maroon jacket, he tossed it over to her, but he shouldn't have done that. Her reaction time was too slow, so it simply dropped onto the floor as her hands shot out a millisecond too late. With another big sigh, Cloud stooped down to grab it before handing it over to her this time.

"Thanks," Aerith murmured appreciatively before she slipped her arms through the sleeves.

Once they were in his car, Cloud handed her his phone as he buckled in his seatbelt. "Put in your address."

Slowly taking it out of his hold with both hands, Aerith managed a small smile before she pushed past his long sleeves and began to type in her address with her thumbs. He pumped up the heater in the meantime—spring nights would get really cold all of a sudden on some days.

"Here," Aerith reached over to clasp his phone onto the holder attached to one of the vents. When Cloud saw the ETA, he nearly choked on his saliva.

"You live _far_ ," he said. He didn't even try to hide his surprise. "Thirty minutes? You don't live near campus at all." Remembering how she had told him how she only lived a block away, Cloud frowned as he realized the fact that she had lied to him. When he looked over to her, she averted her gaze and glanced over to the window instead.

"Sorry," she apologized again.

"… It's fine." Turning the wheel, Cloud entered back onto the streets and followed the directions of the GPS.

The ride to her place went in silence. Cloud didn't say a word, and neither did Aerith. He had expected her to at least say something—he figured that it was within her character to just blab away—but it irked him when she remained quiet. Because of this, Cloud began to regret his words as he gently braked at a red light.

Just when he thought they would remain silent throughout their entire drive, Aerith's stomach started to rumble loudly. At first, Cloud ignored it for her sake, but when it continued without showing any signs of stopping, he let out another irritated sigh.

"What do you want to eat?" he suddenly asked her as he pulled over to the side. He took his phone out of its holder so that he could redirect them to a place to eat. "That is, if you're feeling okay to eat. I don't want you to barf all over my car."

"Eat? No, it's okay. I'm not that hung—" Aerith put a hand over her stomach when it growled its loudest, causing her to blush slightly out of embarrassment. "Anything's okay. I just don't want to bother you or anything."

_Too late._

This time, he knew not to say it out loud and, instead, typed the place he had in mind and pressed its address. Aerith leaned a bit closer to see where he was heading and yipped in glee.

"Yay, hamburgers! I've always heard of this place, but I never tried!" she giggled, losing her self-control as she allowed her drunkenness to take over again. "I've never been out this late either, so hehe."

"What?" Cloud questioned, curiosity piqued as he entered the freeway. She was three years into college just like him, and she never went out late at night? What kind of college life had she been living? "Are you telling me you've never went out like this before?"

"Nope!" She shook her head, head lulling to the side a bit before she snapped it back against the seat. Another round of uncontrolled laughter came before she continued. "All I've been doing is just studying my butt off! I don't got time for any of that stuff, silly."

"… And your part-time job?"

"Oh, definitely, my part-time job too," she slurred. Not finding anything to play in her hands, she decided to just thread her fingers together instead. However, she started to count off of them as she began to list out her activities. "And there's my research, and volunteering, and ugh, commuting too. Do you know it takes me one and a half hours just to get to school by bus? Haha, what a drag!"

Cloud started to realize how he was listening to drunk talk. He would be lying if he said he wasn't interested; there seemed to be more to her than what she let on. However, believing that he shouldn't be the person she should be telling these things to—invasion of privacy wasn't his thing—he avoided replying back to her in hopes that she would let the subject drop, but that didn't stop her at all. "Sometimes I just want to drop it all and give up. I'm starting to get tired, you know? I just want to say fuck it!" Then she covered her mouth with his jacket sleeve and frowned, puzzled. "Did I just curse? Oh no."

"… It's alright," he assured, a bit amused at how shocked she sounded from the idea of cursing. "Things happen. Cursing's just a little problem."

Out of nowhere, she began squealing. Not understanding where it was suddenly coming from, Cloud let out a hesitant, "Are you okay?"

"Yes, yes, I am," she tittered as she covered her face with her hands. She squealed into them as she rolled around in her seat even when restrained by the belt. Cloud didn't dare question why she was suddenly having a fit again—he blamed it on the alcohol once more. When they arrived at the place, Aerith was still out of it as she wobbled on her feet. Wearing high heels didn't help in her cause either as she tried to navigate her surroundings.

Lights from the 24/7 hamburger joint lit up the entire parking lot with its bright, LED lights as other night goers entered and exited the busy place. Being a popular fast-food restaurant for people who wanted a very late dinner, the joint's nighttime was equivalent to its daytime in terms of customers.

Cloud locked his car and went ahead to go inside the restaurant. Thinking that Aerith would just follow behind, he didn't expect her to suddenly grab onto his arm and hang onto it. The bare skin of his arm tingled under the touch of her soft fingertips, giving him a feeling he definitely wasn't used to.

"Hey," he complained as he tried to get her off, but she didn't budge. However, she shook her head as her eyes stared at the ground.

"I'm kind of scared," she whimpered. "Things… look a bit scary."

Looking around, Cloud tried to see what was making her so scared. All he saw were people, but it must've been the nighttime at an odd hour that freaked her out. Remembering how this was her first time ever outside like this late at the night, he pursed his lips and sighed.

"Things aren't as shady as they appear in TV," Cloud said. "Sure, there might be some drunkards—" As if on command, someone randomly tripped and landed on his side in a drunk tumble. His other not-so-fine friend tried helping him up by heaving his arm over his shoulder, and together, the two of them followed their sober friend back into the car. "… And some people who _might_ smoke—" Nothing was helping Cloud in his case when the sudden smell of marijuana wafted underneath their noses from an unknown source. His eye twitched before he finally finished. "—but it's not that bad."

"Right," Aerith said flatly, totally not convinced. Holding tighter onto his arm, the girl didn't seem to have any thoughts about letting go. Because he didn't want to manhandle her and rip her off, Cloud simply accepted his fate and entered the restaurant with her.

Things were a lot less "scary" once they were inside. Groups of people their age hung around tables as they ate their meals while lone wolves stood in line just to grab a late-night snack. Employees worked tirelessly as they sliced potatoes through the machines and dried the French fries that came fresh out of the oil. To Cloud, it was a very typical sight, but to Aerith, it was a different story.

"Whoa, I can see them cook it," she said in awe, eyes wide as she watched the workers flip the burger. "That's so weird!"

"You're the one who's weird," Cloud finally blurted out—he couldn't contain his mouth for very long. "This is typical. Do you not eat out often?" When her hold loosened, he casually slipped his arm out. He had no trouble since her attention got taken away by the spectacle in front of her.

"I don't have the time to bus all the way over here. I usually just cook at home," she explained as she sniffed the air delightfully. "Is this what delicious unhealthiness smells like?"

For some odd reason, Cloud was able to see which part of her was influenced by the alcohol and which part was real. Her amazement from something so simple made him more curious about what kind of life she lived. Not wanting to go down that train of thought, Cloud stuffed his hands in his pockets and averted his attention over to the small, yet classic menu instead that hung above the cash registers. When it was close to their turn in line, Aerith didn't seem to have her order yet.

"Please tell me you're able to stomach food," Cloud remarked. "There's no point in eating if you're just going to vomit it all."

"I mean, I feel fine right now?" Aerith didn't convince him with the way she grabbed onto his arm again, this time for balance. She swung her head forward so that she could look up at him, grin large on her face as her ponytail swished to the side. "See?"

"That's what they all say. What are you going to order?"

"Oh wait, let me check my bank account real quick."

"…"

He scanned the menu one more time to make sure his eyes weren't playing tricks on him. The food wasn't too expensive, but she still had to check her balance? When her smile died a bit, he knew she encountered a money issue.

"Um, I think I'll just get a milkshake," Aerith laughed nervously. "Also, are we having an earthquake? Things are spinning a bit."

"It's just you," he said blankly before he went up to the cash register. "Two medium fries and a milkshake, please."

Aerith watched as he inserted his chip and paid for the food so easily. When it was her turn to order, Cloud grabbed onto her elbow to lead her towards a table.

"I already ordered it for you," he informed. "Along with a side of fries. I don't think you're able to stomach a whole burger."

"Wait, you didn't have to," she insisted, but he ignored her as he sat down at a two-seater. Suppressing a yawn, he propped an elbow up on the table as he palmed his chin, sapphire eyes looking lazily through the black window that presented the parking lot. Wondering how he managed to go from playing card games with his friends to having a two-a.m. snack with his best friend's crush, Cloud questioned why he even tried reasoning with any of this anymore as Aerith hesitantly sat across from him. Once she sat down, she clutched the side of her head, which had been pounding ever since she left the party.

"… Thank you for picking me up, Cloud," she said, voice soft as her green eyes landed on his face. When he turned to look at her, he was only able to maintain two seconds of eye contact before he averted his gaze. Realizing too late how pretty she actually was, Cloud started to get nervous as he felt her brilliant eyes on him.

"It's whatever." He didn't intend to ask her any questions since that would leave some strings attached, but he couldn't stop himself with his overflowing curiosity. Unable to contain himself anymore, he went straight to the point. "It's whatever, but why did you call me? I think you'd be more comfortable with Zack since you know him better than me."

"That's not true," Aerith interjected as she twiddled her thumbs. "I feel more… comfortable with you."

At this, Cloud turned back to look at her as an eyebrow shot up on his forehead. He opened his mouth to say something about how she shouldn't trust strangers like this, but he kept it to himself as he let out an exasperated sigh instead. "I don't understand you, but okay."

"Ugh, I don't understand myself," Aerith groaned as she thumped her head onto the table. Cloud wanted to make a comment about how the table probably wasn't too hygienic, but he remained quiet as she rambled on. "I feel like shit right now, but I still want to eat. My heartbeat is going out of control and my head just _hurts._ "

"…"

"I don't even party." She surprised him by suddenly shooting her head back up, only to cover her face with her two hands. "I just wanted to let loose and maybe feel like a college student for once and do what I'm supposed to do in my age, but maybe that type of scene just isn't for me."

"Ah, no wonder," Cloud said his thoughts out loud. "You don't seem to be a partier."

"Darn, I tried to look the part too."

Cloud never thought he had to monitor his thoughts so closely before as he carefully made sure not to say anything stupid in front of her about her looks… and how they were really nice.

_No, Cloud,_ _**no.** _

Aerith patted her eyes in an attempt to rub the itch out of them without smearing her makeup before she let out a long breath. "I'm never doing this ever again, no matter how crappy I feel. Never. And my friends? They were just random people from some club I'm in. They invited me and I foolishly just went. Why, why, why?"

"Hey, it's okay," Cloud interrupted as he sat there and witnessed her rambling, which was beginning to evolve into a borderline-breakdown. Knowing fully well the emotional cycles that alcohol brought along (Jessie unfortunately gave him too many experiences), Cloud quickly went over to the front to grab their order and slid her serving of fries to her. "Things happen. It's okay to let loose from time to time." She looked at it in question before she pouted and stuffed one into her mouth.

"You think so?" Aerith reached over for her milkshake and took a large sip out of it. Putting more fries into her mouth, she got Cloud a bit concerned with the way she ate so fast. "Life really sucks. I got bills to pay, grades to keep up, and all sorts of things to manage. Do I even have time to let loose? I don't know. What do you think?"

Tears started to form at her eyes as she continued to stuff more fries into her mouth to the point where her cheeks puffed up on both sides. If the situation wasn't so serious, Cloud would've laughed at her impeccable resemblance to a chipmunk.

"I think that, uh, you're just really drunk," Cloud said uneasily, not too willing to listen in on her problems. It wasn't because he didn't care, but he really didn't want her to regret next morning the things she spilled to a stranger. However, she didn't seem to have a problem with it.

"I'm not drunk," she denied as she swallowed her large chunk of food.

Cloud leaned back against his seat and crossed his arms, expression blank as he signaled towards the side with a small nod.

"Then try walking in a straight line."

Having no clue why he was asking her to do such a simple task, she easily stood up from her seat and slid out. However, when she attempted to walk from one table and back, she leaned terribly to one side, and if not for Cloud and his quick grab on her upper arm, she would've done a public tumble.

"See, I'm able to walk!" Aerith giggled as Cloud sat her back down. Seeing no use in convincing her anymore, Cloud pursed his lips before he began to eat his fries. Not noticing how Aerith was gazing at him intently for a good five seconds, he wasn't prepared for the sudden bomb she detonated at him.

"There's this guy I'm really interested in, but I don't think he feels the same," the brunette declared all of a sudden, causing him to cough a bit as he choked on a fry.

Deciding to say the very first thing on his mind, Cloud blurted, "Please tell me it's Zack."

"'Please'? Seriously?" she laughed, but it didn't sound genuine as she quoted him. "You can drop it with the wingman act. I see right through it."

"I do no such thing," he denied with a straight-face, but he gave it away when he accidently took her milkshake and drank out of it in a desperate attempt to act natural.

"That's mine," Aerith informed him with a smug smile on her lips.

"What? _Oh_ ," Cloud slid it back over to her once he realized his mistake and burned a bit at doing something so silly. But this was it: there was no more saving Zack and preserving his shenanigans anymore. However, there was still _one_ more thing that Cloud had his hopes in: confirmation. "But this guy you're interested in—is it Zack?"

"Of course not."

And there went his hopes as they died and withered away.

Taking a moment to feel extremely sorry towards Zack, Cloud sucked his lips in as he let the harsh truth sink and took the devastating hit for his friend. He made it worse when he asked, "Not even a little bit?"

"No, he's… not my type of guy," Aerith answered hesitantly, eyes taking in his troubled form as she sipped her milkshake.

"But he's pretty nice." Now that his façade was discovered, there was no point in lying low about it anymore—might as well give it all he had before they closed the issue. "And, uh, he really likes you. A lot. And is everything you like in a guy—I think."

 _Sorry, Zack, this is the last resort,_ Cloud apologized mentally for exposing his friend like this.

"There's someone else who fits better," Aerith murmured as her cheeks turned pink. She giggled a little bit as she thought about her supposed crush and chewed on her fries, no longer puffing her cheeks up with them. She cutely swished her head side-to-side as the hair bound by her ribbon swung along with her motions. "Someone who's a lot nicer… and a lot more genuine. Even though he might not like seem like it. He's really kind. And real. And _cute._ "

Cloud watched as she squealed over her crush and sighed dreamily with straw in her mouth. While he was glad that they switched to a less heavy topic compared to first one, Cloud wasn't too keen with this sort of subject either. Instead of saying anything—there was no helping Zack anymore since he had already lost the moment he first stepped foot into the flower café—Cloud simply continued eating his fries as he listened to her.

"I only met him recently, but, ugh, I'm stupid for him."

"I can see that."

"No, you don't get it."

Cloud cocked his head back defensively when she suddenly shot eyes of fiery at him. She took a vicious sip out of her milkshake before she slammed the bottom of it back onto the table. Sensing another mood swing coming up, he prepared himself.

"All good guys are taken, I don't know why I thought he could've been single," Aerith whimpered as she stirred her drink glumly. "Just when I thought I found my guy who wouldn't be judgmental about me and understanding and everything, he just had to have such a beautiful girlfriend. Woe me. Hm, I don't really feel so good right now."

"… Maybe you shouldn't have finished your fries so quick," Cloud sighed. He finished the rest of his before he took her trash and dumped it into the garbage can. When he came back, Aerith's head was already back onto the table. What was ridiculous was how she tried to drink the milkshake sideways as she hugged it to her face, hair scattered all over the table. Feeling that it was time to go, Cloud poked a finger to her shoulder. "Let's go. I think you need some sleep."

"I don't want to go."

"Then do you want to sleep here?"

"It'd be better than my place."

"… C'mon, let's go." Cloud didn't question as he gently tried to get her to sit back up by pushing on one of her shoulders, but Aerith had different plans as she shrugged his hands off and growled at him.

"Quit being nice to me, you womanizer!"

"Womani— _what?_ "

Completely thrown out the loop now, Cloud watched stunned as she swiftly stood up, finished the last of her milkshake, and slam-dunked it into the garbage can before she stalked out with her wobbly glory. He quickly caught up to her as he stayed behind, making sure she didn't take a face-dive down onto the ground.

"You call Zack a ladies' man, but you're the same thing!" she yelled into the parking lot as she stumbled back towards his car. "Darn it!"

"Okay, look, I'm sorry, so quiet down," Cloud tried hushing her as he received disapproving looks from bystanders. They obviously had the wrong idea as they sneered at him with small shakes of their head. "You can let it out all you want once we're on the road."

"I'm a fool to have boy troubles now," she said as she abruptly stopped in her tracks just to turn around to face him. He almost got whipped in the face by her long hair as her half-lidded eyes peered into his. "And you! Quit being so nice."

"I'll stop being nice then." He humored her as he slowly guided her over to his car. Once he managed to get her to sit still in the vehicle, he heaved a breath of relief before he got inside himself.

"Am I going home now?"

And just like that, once she was in his car, her personality became meek again.

"Yes, you are," Cloud stated point-blankly as he pressed her address and routed his way over to her place. "You've stayed out for too long— _I_ stayed out for too long. My friends are probably wondering what the hell I'm doing."

"You didn't tell them where you went?"

"Of course not."

"… Sorry."

From his peripheral vision, he saw the way she turned away on her side in her seat. Having a sense that she was going through a lot more than just boy troubles, Cloud lightly shook his head before he reversed out of the parking lot and entered the street.

"It's fine," was all he offered as they drove in silence.

After twenty minutes of driving, he started to notice the drastic differences between the neighborhoods surrounding campus—where he lived—and the neighborhoods that he drove through to reach Aerith's. Nearly devoid of streetlights, the sidewalks were barely visible as the darkness of the area unnerved him greatly. The paint peeled off the wood from the many houses he passed by as weeds grew wildly and unkept in the dry, grassless yards. As he passed by the worn-down buildings, Cloud began to wonder what kind of place Aerith lived in as he slowly made his way over to her home.

When the GPS turned off to signify the end of his route, Cloud tried not to visibly react as he turned off his engine. He had stopped in front of some dingy apartment in the middle of the darkness. While it looked better than some of its other neighboring buildings, it wasn't doing any better as the only signs of life included one lit window on the third (and highest) floor and a person exiting out of the complex for a smoke. Starting to realize a potential reason why she had been picky about who would pick her up, Cloud began to understand a little bit more—just little bit. Still clueless about why she decided that it'd be okay to show him, Cloud didn't question it as he unbuckled his seatbelt.

"We're here." When she didn't stir, Cloud leaned over to her side and shook her on the shoulder to wake her up. "Aerith, we're here."

"Hm? Where?"

"You're home."

"Crap." She shot up from her seat, surprising him as she looked wildly at her surroundings. Horror evolved on her face when she realized how they were right in front of her apartment as she groaned loudly and clutched her head.

"What's wrong?" he asked. If he had a hard time understanding her when she was her normal self, then he definitely didn't understand her when she was alcohol influenced.

"I didn't mean to fall asleep. You weren't supposed to see my place," Aerith explained, voice slightly panicked. "You should've dropped me off somewhere close. Ah, but I didn't tell you that."

"Even if you did tell me to do that, I don't think I would've been fine with that," Cloud said warily, not wanting to offend her neighborhood. "So it's fine."

"My place is a dump, isn't it?" Aerith said softly as she frantically gathered her belongings. He could hear the insecurity in her voice as she shrugged off his jacket and handed it back to him. "Only thing I can afford anyway. Campus apartments are too expensive, and I'm barely—"

"I'm not judging," Cloud interrupted her string of explanations as he propped his door open while putting his jacket back on. He sighed as the brisk air blew into his car before he stuck a foot out. "So it's fine."

"…"

Not wanting to continue the topic for her sake, Cloud stepped out and knocked on the roof of his car. "Let's go. I'll see you in."

Wordlessly, Aerith came out of his car as well, but she didn't look too good as she closed his door with a weak shut. "You're too nice."

"Hm? What did you say?"

"Nothing."

Together, the two entered her apartment complex as Aerith led the way. Cloud made sure not to step on the debris that littered the main floor before they climbed the stairs. When asked about the elevator, Aerith merely grimaced.

"You don't know when it stops working sometimes. I'd rather not risk it."

"I see."

"Like I said before," Aerith began once they reached her door. Cloud eyed the shoddy hinges as Aerith rummaged through her purse to get her keys out, "I'm working my butt off just to afford this sort of place. It'd be nice if it was closer to campus though."

"… How early do you have to wake up?"

"Well, I make sure to get all the morning classes so that I have time for my part-time job and stuff in the afternoon, so around five a.m. everyday."

Cloud visibly winced out of sympathy when he heard that ungodly hour. The only times he had ever woken up that early was back in high school for morning track practices. "Um, what time do you sleep then?"

"Finally interested?" Aerith giggled as she finally managed to fish out her keys. Realizing how he was asking her questions non-stop without restraint, Cloud unnaturally cleared his throat before he dropped them.

"Seems like you'll be fine. I'm going to head home no—whoa," Cloud grabbed onto her shoulder when she suddenly hunched over when the door opened. Knowing what was going to happen next with the way she held her hand over her mouth, Cloud helped her enter the apartment before he closed the door with one foot.

"I'm not feeling so good," Aerith managed to say as she dropped her purse onto the ground.

"Here it comes," he muttered, not knowing why he even believed her when she said her stomach was fine. Easily finding the bathroom in her very small apartment once the lights were switched on, Cloud led her towards it before she collapsed onto her knees and began retching into the toilet bowl without further warning. He dropped down beside her as he rubbed her back soothingly. When her ribbon loosened from her hair, he pulled it off of her and, without thinking, stuffed it into his jacket pocket before he held her hair in a bundle so that it wouldn't fall into the toilet.

"Go away," Aerith muttered as she hid her face away from him in embarrassment. She blindly swatted her hand at him to shoo him off. "You're legit seeing me at my wor—"

Cloud sighed as she went through her second round of vomiting. Again wondering how his Saturday night led up to this fiasco, he sat there patiently as she threw everything up, impressed that she had lasted this long in the first place.

"I've seen worse," he assured her as he momentarily reached over to flip on the switch. The lights flickered a little bit before they came to life. However, they weren't much help in lighting up the area; her bulbs were tungsten, which were the very old kind of bulbs. Having never seen such a type ever since his childhood, he felt for her and her living conditions.

"I usually don't throw up, but I guess there's a first for everything" Aerith huffed into the toilet as she took a few sheets of toilet paper and wiped her mouth with it. Flushing the toilet with a weak hand, she stayed there just in case her stomach decided to hurl again. Too tired to even notice the motions on her back and the hand that held her hair, Aerith shook her head regrettably. "I'm never partying ever again."

"Understandable," was all he said.

Finally mustering the courage to look at him, Aerith tiredly gave him a smile.

"You should quit being so nice. I think your girlfriend would get the wrong idea if she saw you like this. Even I'm confused."

"Girlfriend?"

Cloud let go of her hair when she suddenly stood up, reached for the mouthwash, and temporarily cleansed her mouth with it as she gargled it for a couple of seconds before she spat it out into the sink. Not looking too well with skin pale and clammy, she sat back down next to the toilet since her stomach still wasn't feeling so good.

"You picked me up when you didn't have to, bought me food, and now, you're helping me throw up," she chuckled darkly as she rubbed half her face with a hand. "I don't know if you're just being nice or if you're just a natural womanizer."

"Sorry that I'm not an asshole," Cloud blinked, not knowing why he was suddenly being scolded for giving help to someone who needed it. "And it seems like you have the wrong idea here."

"Which is?"

"I don't have a girlfriend. I don't know where you got that from."

Cloud didn't notice the sudden sparkle that came back into her eyes as she stared at him, unblinking.

"… You don't?"

Cloud shook her head, not sure where this was heading. "Yeah, I don't."

"What about that girl that you came with? On Tuesday."

"What girl?" Cloud frowned as he stretched his legs a bit. It was funny how they were just talking inside the bathroom. "You mean Tifa? Geez, _no_ , she is _not_ my girlfriend." How many times had people asked him that already? It was starting to get real old. "She's just a really close friend of mine. But why?" Being as dense as a rock when it came to romance, he didn't understand why they were suddenly talking about Tifa.

When Aerith regained her spirits and started giggling like crazy, Cloud was beyond freaked.

"I see!" However, she didn't have time to stay happy for long when her stomach started to act up again. Finally realizing how Cloud was still here just watching everything and smelling everything, Aerith burned red at how ridiculous she looked in front of him. Not wanting him to experience anymore, she kicked him out by shoving him through the door and closing it, leaving him to dumbly stare at the barred space.

"Why am I even here?" Cloud mumbled to himself as he stood back up on his feet. Taking out his phone to check the time, his eyes nearly flew out when he realized how late it was. At that exact moment, his phone rang as Tifa's name popped up across it. Pinching his eyebrows together, he let out a long breath before he answered the call.

"Dude, are you okay?" came her concerned voice along with everyone else's in his apartment. "You've been out for a while; what are you up to?"

"I'm alive—that's all you need to know," Cloud settled as an answer as he paced around the empty living room. As he spoke into the phone, his eyes wandered around as they studied Aerith's home. Even though small, it was very neat and tidy; trash was nowhere in sight while her kitchen remained spotless. Already having a sense of what kind of busy schedule Aerith lived by, Cloud had expected her place to be some sort of mess, but he was pleasantly surprised to see it so hygienic, albeit a bit plain. Furniture was absent; the only thing in her living room was a small one-person table and a chair for eating.

"Are you going to head home soon? Zack and I decided to just stay over, some come back so that we can binge some movies. We don't want to start without you!"

"Boo, start without him!" roared Barret's voice from the distance. "My ass is tired of waiting for him."

"What happened to dedicating ourselves to a good sleep schedule?" Cloud mused.

"It's a Saturday night; it's fine to let loose from time to time," Tifa giggled. "I think Jessie wants to watch a chic flick though—not sure if you're down."

Cloud mocked a gag before he scoffed. "Hell no. Just start without me. I'll be back soon."

"But where are you?" It was Zack's turn to man the phone as his cheerful voice made its appearance. "We were worried about you, buddy, but we didn't want to interrupt whatever you were doing!"

"I'm just… somewhere," Cloud answered, wishing he could sound more convincing, but his brain decided not to cooperate with him tonight. "Don't worry about it."

"Alright. Come back soon!" and the call ended.

"Your friends?"

Aerith finally came out of the bathroom, looking a lot better than before now that her face was all washed up and makeup-free. Now that things were calm again, Cloud started to get conscious about how he was just standing in her one-room apartment technically uninvited.

"Are you feeling better now?" he asked as he rubbed his neck awkwardly.

Aerith nodded happily. "Yup! I think I'm pretty much sobered up." Then, her smile died a little bit. "I'm really sorry for making you put up with me for the past, what, two hours? That wasn't my plan, and I—"

"I think the both of us can agree that we'd both feel better if you'd stop apologizing." Cloud offered her a wry smile, tired of saying "it's fine" every time she expressed her guilt. "Plus…" he looked around her place one more time, "I sort of understand your situation a little better now."

"How my situation is pretty pitiful?" Aerith laughed humorlessly as she did a twirl in her empty living room. "You're my first visitor ever, did you know that? Besides my mom, of course."

"Um, I don't think it's pitiful," Cloud admitted hesitantly, not sure what to say whenever things got into sensitive zones. "I think it's just unnecessarily harder on you as a student."

"Tell me about it." Aerith went over to her kitchen and poured herself a glass of water from the pitcher. Gulping it down in one go, she kept the pitcher out; she had no plans on having a hangover that would handicap her in bed the next morning. "Our research head was kind enough to let me work a night shift, so I don't get home until midnight or something. When I do, I try to finish up all my assignments before I have to wake up at 5 a.m. again. I wonder why I'm not dead yet."

"Same," Cloud said in slight awe as he listened to her vent. It was the least he could do. "If you don't mind me asking, do you have, uh—"

"Money issues? Yeah, I do." Aerith admitted it so easily, which was a huge contrast compared to how she was so antsy earlier at the thought of him seeing her living conditions. "My mom's already struggling with my tuition. The least I can do is pay for rent and everything."

"…" Cloud really struggled with the right words as he let everything sink. He knew people like her existed around him, but he never personally met any of them. Not feeling equipped enough to provide her any type of support, he kept quiet as she chugged another glass of water.

"Why are you… letting me know this stuff?" he finally asked. Every moment he spent with her tonight was private and personal; by the end of it all, he still couldn't figure out the reason. "I feel a bit bad that I'm the one you're telling these things to."

"Why, you ask," Aerith hummed as she played with her empty plastic cup. She then looked up at him as she gave him a shy smile. "It's because you're nice enough to just listen to a stranger's rant while looking like the most uncomfortable person in the entire world."

"Sorry," he apologized, causing her to laugh as she skipped over to him and pulled her face close to his. He instantly backed away, eyebrow cocked up in question at the sudden invasion of his personal space. "What?"

"So, why are you sticking around for so long anyway? I thought you were in a hurry to get back home," she said cheekily. "Unless you want to stay over and have a sleepover party with me."

"Not a chance," Cloud hurriedly rejected her offer as he took another step back. "I was just about to head out after making sure you weren't dying in the bathroom anymore."

"How sweet," she cooed, but she turned him around by the shoulders and pushed him towards the front door, "But I'm fine now, so don't make me feel even worse for taking up more of your time."

"It's a bit too late to apologize for that," he muttered as he gently shrugged her off and walked on his own. Opening the door for him, Aerith watched as he made sure he had his phone and keys with him before he stepped out.

"Seriously, thanks for driving me home," Aerith thanked once more. "I would've been in actual trouble if you hadn't come. And… thanks for listening to me."

"Think ahead next time," he sighed. "And rely on your other friends for this. I'm sure they wouldn't… judge you based on where you live—if they're real friends."

"… I'll think about it."

"Don't think about it—do it."

"Bossy."

"Excuse me?" Too tired to even begin a silly argument right now, Cloud shook his head as he resigned his fighting spirits for the night. "Take care of yourself better. I might not know much, but stress is a silent killer. Don't kill yourself with work."

Aerith didn't take too easily his piece of advice, but he hadn't expected her to anyway; he was just a stranger offering his two cents. Not wanting to delve further into something that wasn't his business, he managed a small smile before he gave her a wave good bye.

"Drive home safe," she said softly. "I hope to see you around?"

"… See you around." _In the flower café with Zack._ Licking his lips now that he finally thought of his best friend again, Cloud prepared his fighting spirits for one last thing. If he didn't succeed today, then he would have to deliver the sad news to Zack. "Listen, Aerith."

"Hm?" Her hand was still on the knob of the door ready to close it. She poked her body out a little bit when she realized how their conversation was still continuing. Cloud sucked his lips in as he carefully framed his words so that he didn't sound like a desperately-failing wingman—which he was.

"I know that you… like someone else."

"Y-yeah?"

For some odd reason, she was visibly getting nervous—he could tell with the way she started twisting and turning her doorknob absentmindedly. However, he marched forth, clueless with what kind of thoughts currently ran through her mind. "But don't you think you could… consider Zack a little bit more? As his best friend, I want the best for him—but it's okay if you really can't find yourself to be interested." He made sure to make the last point clear; he didn't want to force her into anything. "So, uh, yeah. That's all I wanted to say."

"… You still don't get it, huh? Even after everything." The disappointment in her voice was clear. "Are you that clueless?"

"Sorry, it seems like I'm missing something here," Cloud frowned. What was she talking about?

"… Hasn't it been obvious? Especially after today?"

When Cloud kept silent, Aerith shook her head as she clicked her tongue, unable to fathom how he still didn't get it. Blaming it on his fixation with the whole wingman business, she didn't stay upset for long as a coy smile played at her lips.

"Do you want to know?"

He didn't even get the chance to answer before she placed her hands on his shoulders, leaned forward, and kissed him right on the cheek.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Helloooo A/N at the end this time! I hope this chapter was good LOL I had a bit of a pacing issue since I introduced a looooot of things in this chapter, but I decided to not worry about it too much since I focused on having fun instead of writing this thing as if it was an assignment haha. I hope we can all appreciate nice-guy Cloud! I hope his selfless image broke through in this chapter, even if he's mostly a bitch about it on the outside HAHA. AND I HOPE THIS CLIFFHANGER AIN'T TOO BAD! Let me know what you guys think! HEHE and thanks for reading once again~ 
> 
> HOPE YOU GUYS ENJOYED THIS FLuUuuUF!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOOOOO UPDATE! So there was supposed to be more content in this chapter, but I noticed the word count and was like "oh no, not again" LOL! So I had to cut it where I did hehe (or else it would've been a hugeeeee chapter).
> 
> But yes, great to see everyone loving this, ty for the comments! It's fun for me too hehe. And people asked me how long this is gonna be. The answer is: idk man we'll see LOOOOOL. My plans were to not have it super long, but pfft depends on how much cushion I put in between scenes, so!
> 
> I'm updating at a human time this time (at least for me), so yaaaay. Without further ado, here is chapter 7! Enjoy c:

In his entire lifetime, Cloud had only been in _one_ relationship, and the poor thing only lasted three months too. It was just with some girl back in high school, who had confessed to him despite not knowing him too well. Like an unexperienced fool, Cloud agreed to go out with her " _just 'cause,"_ only to get dumped three months later because of the same two reasons that chased all the girls away: his lack of romantic awareness and Tifa.

Even back in high school, Tifa had the reputation of being the most sought out female among the male population of wolves because of her kindness and beauty. She didn't even need to utter a single word to get them to all worship her at her feet. It didn't help whenever she became shy because of it either; it just fueled them even more. Being completely immune to her charms as her childhood friend, Cloud had to deal with a lot of stupid stuff just to stand next to her in the hallways. From more requests to wingman from near-random strangers to glares of jealousy and death for being able to just breathe the same air as her, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that Cloud had reconsidered their friendship many times before just so that he could get some peace back into his life.

The only pro in their tight friendship (besides having a loyal, trustworthy companion), was Tifa's role as his personal pest control. Their bond was symbiotic—mutualism was the term he learned in his intro biology class. Tifa did a great job warding off random girls (their track team back in the day was mighty popular) while Cloud did quality work in making sure no idiot decided to sneak into her car when she wasn't looking anymore because _yes_ , it had happened before back in high school. It was a good thing Cloud had been there to see the odd lump in the backseat floor, only to realize that it was an actual body just curled up into a ball with head down in a desperate attempt to remain hidden. From that day on, Tifa became scarred, and Cloud gained some experience in reporting suspicious behavior to the police.

But that was besides the point. Because of Tifa's intimidating presence in his life and his pure disinterest in maintaining a romantic relationship, Cloud was poorly inexperienced in anything girls. He didn't go too far in his past relationship either. They would share pecks here and there—it was mostly the girl who initiated the kisses—and some odd dates every few millennia, but that was it before the girl had enough of his bluntness and unromantic nature.

Not that he cared too much. He wasn't much of a texter, so he was glad that his phone finally got a much-deserved break from getting bombed every morning and every night. He was foolish to think that they still could've been friends too because even though he wasn't the best boyfriend, everyone agreed that he was one great friend to have. Unfortunately, that didn't work out either, and instead, he got called an asshole by the girl's best friend in front of everyone by the lockers.

His first real kiss was one he didn't even want to remember either. Deep in the depths of the forbidden did he bury the cursed memory because every time he remembered it, he felt a convulsion ready to roll throughout every limb and every muscle in his body. If he hadn't done such a good job repressing it every time, he probably would've been on a stretcher already, wheeled off towards a mental asylum.

Jokes aside, his first "real" kiss was unfortunately with Jessie. She had entered his room super drunk one night, and mistaking him for her boyfriend at the time, climbed onto his bed when he was sleeping and planted a kiss right on his lips. Half-asleep, Cloud hadn't realized what was going on until his door busted wide open with Tifa and Barret calling out for Jessie to stop. Once the commotion got him to his senses, he ripped Jessie off with him while Tifa and Barret finally restrained the girl and made her see with her own eyes that Cloud was indeed _not_ her boyfriend. Cloud had spent the entire night just rubbing his mouth and regretting his choice to live with someone like her. It didn't help that all of his friends would take out the traumatic incident just for laughs whenever drunk stories about Jessie came about too. He made sure he was absent every time so that he could live to see another day.

In conclusion, if anyone asked if Cloud had any experience in dealing with girls, the answer would be a hard no. So when Aerith leaned in close—close enough for him to smell the fruity scent of the face wash she just used—with her soft, pink lips, his mind flipped the switch and instantly shut down. When her mouth pressed against the skin of his cheek, his brain turned on the emergency power as everything booted back up again. However, all the settings were put into overdrive as his nerves tingled, heart raced, and thought process destroyed.

It was only when she pulled back that he regained his senses. With a hand instantly flying to his cheek, Cloud bent his eyebrows in various directions and angles as his eyes bore into hers in deep confusion and stupor.

"You just kissed me," Cloud spluttered. Stating the obvious was the only way for him to stay rooted in reality. "Why did you—"

"You can't be oblivious anymore," Aerith pouted, offering little to relieve his questions. Before he could even ask her to clarify what in the world she meant, she stuck her tongue out and shut the door, leaving him frozen stiff behind it.

…

"No," Cloud whispered when he finally gathered all the willpower to turn around and briskly make his way out of the apartment complex. "No, no, no."

When he made it back into his car, his head immediately banged against the steering wheel as he shut his eyes closed, all the while chanting "no" underneath his breath like a cursed sorcerer's spell. He foolishly thought that his strong sense of denial would somehow make it all a dream and deduce it as a crazy part of his imagination that came about because of his lack of sleep. However, what brought him back to reality was the heat that tingled and imprinted itself onto the skin of his cheek. Cloud tried to rub it away with his palm, only to make things worse—her scent and perfume had lingered on his jacket. Feeling hotter, Cloud roughly shrugged the thing off and chucked it to the backseat before he gathered some of his sanity back together and willed himself to head home.

Too many questions that had no answers swarmed in his head as he drove. Nothing made sense. They had spoken to each other only three times— _three_ —so how in the world did things lead up to _this_? He swore he didn't do anything that would raise the flags, so why? Heck, he even made himself appear stupid with the way he kept trying to vouch for Zack so shamelessly, but this girl…

_He's really kind. And real. And_ _**cute.** _

"No," he groaned, feeling his heart beat faster just a tiny bit when he realized that those words were about _him_ , that she was calling him kind, and real, and… _cute._

She was cute too but—

_No._

Cloud banged his head _hard_ against the steering wheel once more when he reached a red light. There was no denying it anymore. With all the pieces coming together, no amount of denial nor obliviousness could get him out of this pickle—a kiss was a kiss, and there was no way around it. Somehow and some way, the person who Aerith liked wasn't Zack, but…

_Beep!_

"Shit," he cursed, shooting his head back up as he automatically stomped on the gas for the green light. The car behind him wasn't having any of his crisis as it revved its engine, shot past him on the other lane, and cut him off as it sped off into the distance. Cloud hard-blinked the fatigue out of his eyes before he shook his head and focused on the road before he found himself rammed into a tree.

Sleep—he needed it _now._

~.~.~

Everyone was gathered in the living room in front of the TV on the floor, entrapped in the movie until Jessie broke the silence.

"Am I the only one wondering what he's up to?" she asked in the middle of their chic-flick. She stuffed a palm-full of popcorn into her mouth before she continued speaking. "He never leaves like this in the middle of night, and for what?"

"Maybe a friend called him for something," offered Biggs. He made a face of disgust when some popcorn bits flew out of her mouth and pushed a hand against the side of her face so that he could turn it away from his direction. "How many times did he leave in the middle of the night to pick up Zack over here?"

"I invade this apartment too much, don't I?" Zack said sheepishly, but Tifa shook her head.

"Don't feel bad, or else I'll start feeling bad," she laughed. "Maybe I should just move out and live with you guys in the living room next year. I've been staying with a bunch randoms anyway in my current apartment since last year."

"Why didn't you just live with Cloud when we moved out of dorms during our second year?" Jessie inquired as she barred Biggs from all the popcorn out of spite. "With the way you're always staying over, you should've just moved in here with him in the first place."

"It's because I heard too many horror stories about friends becoming enemies once they live with each other," Tifa sighed as she stretched her legs in front of her. "Since you're literally under the same roof now and have to accommodate potentially-different lifestyles. But I've known the guy since I was three, so maybe there wouldn't be a problem between us."

"Cloud might be grouchy sometimes, but he's actually a pretty good housemate. Quiet, clean, and easygoing." Biggs assured. Then, he jerked a thumb over to Jessie, who immediately glared daggers at him in response. "It's this girl who's the mistake."

"Bitch, don't start with me."

Before a fight broke out between the two roommates, the front door got unlocked, signaling Cloud's return home.

"Look who's back," Biggs whistled as the blond shut the door behind him and took off his shoes. "That business of yours sure took a while, didn't it?"

"…" Cloud didn't say anything. When he entered the living room, everyone could see how tired he was compared to how he looked three hours ago. Wondering what kind of war he had to fight, Zack stood up to swing his arm over the blond's shoulders and lead him into the living room.

"We had a fantastic time with the games, but it wasn't the same without you! What was so urgent that got you leaving like that, buddy?" Zack asked cheerily. "A friend of yours got in trouble or something?"

"What friends?" Barret scoffed as he fixed his eyes back onto the movie. Out of everyone, he was strangely the most invested in the chic-flick. "The only friends he has are the ones right here, right now."

"Wait, you're right." To make sure, Jessie did a headcount, and lo and behold, the only people Cloud ever interacted with were already here. So who did he go meet? "Now you got me interested in your affairs, sir."

"Too bad I'm not interested in yours," Cloud deadpanned as he gently shrugged Zack off. "I just had some stuff to take care of."

"At four a.m.?" Tifa mused. Cloud's eye twitched a bit at the mini-interrogation they were having with him. If he had known, he would've just slept the morning off in his car.

"Hey, let the guy have some privacy," Zack backed him up as he mocking crossed his arms. "The guy can go around and do whatever he wa—wait a minute."

"What?" Cloud asked uneasily. He didn't like the way Zack suddenly stopped in the middle of his sentence as he inched closer. Taking a few steps back, Cloud gave him a morbid look when Zack brought his face over to his shoulder. "Dude, back o—"

"You smell like a girl," Zack announced, sandwiching his chin between his thumb and index finger. Immediately at the sound of his words, everyone in the living room crawled on their knees and got closer like a bunch of pigeons clucking for some bread crumbs. When Zack got closer to have another whiff, Cloud ripped himself away and subconsciously clutched at his jacket with a hand.

"What are you talking about?" Cloud said hurriedly. Tifa wasn't kidding when she said he was a bad liar; he was basically _asking_ to get found out with the way he sounded so defensive. Zack grinned a sly smile as he gave Cloud the space he requested.

"What, are you gonna try telling me that you naturally smell like flowers and citrus? And _perfume?_ No, you _definitely_ smell like a girl," Zack jokingly ran a hair through his hair as he smirked, "I would know."

"Wait, let me have a whiff."

Cloud jumped around the sofa as Jessie tried chasing him down. Once he hopped atop the table that connected their living room to the kitchen, he stuck a leg out at her, daring her to come closer as the unpleasant frown never disappeared from his face.

"It's almost five fucking a.m. Let's not do this now," he warned, but Jessie didn't listen to him as she slapped his foot out the way and tugged at one of the ends of his jacket. Putting it underneath her nose, she inhaled the scent on it right before Cloud could tug it away.

"Wait, Zack isn't kidding—this guy actually got some perfume on him!" exclaimed Jessie as she whipped her head back to announce the news to everyone. "I'm serious! Tifa, come here, you gotta make sure I'm not just imagining it."

Tifa blinked as she took a moment to register what was going on. Cloud? With perfume?

Cloud was usually good at throwing back witty remarks, but his mouth struggled to come up with a plausible explanation to get his friends off his case. He racked his brain for any sort of excuse as Tifa walked over, but nothing came up—how was he supposed to explain why he was smelling like Aerith? Make up some lie and say he actually used girl perfume from time to time just to smell nice? _Hell no._

Being a lot gentler with Tifa than with Jessie, Cloud merely grimaced as he let Tifa take a hold of his jacket and pull some of it down to her nose. When she smelled the scent that got Zack and Jessie crazy, she raised an eyebrow and looked up at him.

"Um, you smell very nice, Cloud," was the only thing she said. Cloud clicked his tongue in annoyance before jumping off the table. He could see the question in everyone's eyes as they waited for an explanation because none of them could sit still with the idea of Cloud with an actual girl. Wondering if he really smelled that strongly, he lifted his jacket at his shoulder and sniffed the inside, only to cringe away from his own clothes.

"I was helping someone out," Cloud finally said as he went over to the fridge to pour himself a glass of water. If he didn't elaborate just a little bit, then they would never let him off the hook. "Picked them up and drove them home. That's it."

Jessie scrunched up her face in disappointment. " _Pfft_ , that's it? Damn, I got excited for nothing," Jessie feigned a spit at the ground as she kicked the chair lightly. "You should've said so sooner, you taxi driver. You got a lot of gas on you, don't you?"

"I've kept track of the amount of gas you've wasted whenever I had to haul you back home," Cloud spat back, his fighting spirits returning as he glared at the brunette. "And none of it was free, so pay up."

"You really got to say no sometimes, dude," Biggs chuckled, knowing fully well how Cloud would just drop stuff sometimes just to fetch his friends from a wild night. He went back over to plop onto the floor with Barret so that they continue watching the movie. Jessie huffed a breath before she retreated as well.

"You're real sneaky, young man," Zack teased as he wagged a silly finger. "Just going off like that. But seriously, when you find yourself a girl, you _have_ to let me know."

"Haha," Cloud laughed nervously as he drank his water quickly. "Sure."

When it was just Cloud and Tifa left in the kitchen, the air got quite uncomfortable for reasons unknown. Cloud quirked an eyebrow up at Tifa, but she simply responded with her own.

"I don't like the look you're giving me," Cloud stated, not afraid to be blunt with Tifa. "I feel like you're my mom right now."

"Please," Tifa chuckled as she leaned her back against the kitchen counter. "I don't look that scary."

"Guess you haven't checked the mirror."

Tifa teasingly pushed his face to the side with her finger before she said, "I hope you know what you're doing as Zack's wingman."

Cloud nearly choked on his water as he swallowed the cold liquid harshly down his throat. Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, he tried to play it cool, but dropped it when he realized there was no going past Tifa.

"I said no lies," he bravely declared. "She was just… drunk."

"And she called you?"

"Alcohol makes you do random things." Even Cloud looked unconvinced with his own statement as he spun the water in his cup. "Some things," _many things,_ "led to another, so the situation wasn't as, uh, random as they look right now."

"… Cloud."

"So, it's whatever."

"Cloud."

"What?"

"You're blushing."

Cloud unintentionally put too much force in playing with the water, so half of his glass swished out of his cup as it splattered all across the kitchen floor and onto Tifa's feet.

"Shit, sorry," he cursed as he reached over to her side to grab the rag. Throwing it down to absorb the mess, he was glad for the time it bought for him to regain himself. He guiltily watched as Tifa tore her now-damp socks off as she held them between her thumb and index finger. "Do you want to borrow a pair of my socks?"

"That'd be great, you clumsy," Tifa chuckled as she stared at her wet socks in amusement. "Who knew you would be the type of guy to get flustered?'

"I am not flustered," he stated flatly, hoping that she would drop the subject for the night so that he could finally find some peace. His wishes were heard, and Tifa didn't say anymore about his little trip outside with Zack's girl. However, she added one last thing before she closed the case.

"For your sake, I hope you get it all figured out so that, uh, you and Zack don't get messy. I wouldn't want to see that happen."

"That's not going to happen," Cloud rolled his eyes as he wiped the floor with one sweep of the rag before he threw it back into the sink. "You don't have to worry."

"Cool. Now c'mon," Tifa tugged him by the arm as she grinned towards the TV. "Let's watch the chic-flick with everyone!"

"Oh no," groaned Cloud, but he nonetheless allowed Tifa to drag him over to the living room where everyone sat ooo'ing at the screen. Right when he was about to join his friends, Cloud made the mistake of glancing at the TV to see what got them all excited.

"Kiss her already, god damn it, kiss her!" Jessie roared as she punched a pillow with a fist. "If you walk always right now, you're gonna—ugh— _kiss her!_ "

The searing heat on his cheek came back at full blast as he watched the female lead kiss the male lead on the cheek underneath the umbrella. Widening his eyes and slapping a hand to the side of his face immediately, Cloud started to feel hot again as he shook his head and began to chant his no's once more like a prayer.

"Cloud, what's wrong?" Zack asked, freaked out from his friend's dark repetition.

"I'm not in the mood to watch this movie," Cloud gritted his teeth. "I'm going to bed. Good night."

"Aw, Cloud, c'mon—"

"I'm going to bed," he repeated as he shut down Tifa's invite before he briskly walked off and shut the door to his room with a slam. Everyone's eyes lingered on the door wondering what was up with him before they shrugged; Cloud acting all grumpy wasn't anything abnormal. As they returned their attention back to the movie, it was unbeknownst to them Cloud's mental breakdown behind the door.

 _Never going to that flower café again,_ he swore to himself as he brushed his teeth intensely _. Ever. Sorry, Zack._

Changing into his white tee and sweats, Cloud turned off the lights, pulled the sheets over his head, and called it a night, ever so wary of the thumping behind his ribcage.

~.~.~

Cloud swore someone up in the skies was playing puppet strings with fate just to mess with his head. After his firm declaration that he was no longer going to accompany Zack to the flower cafe, he not only got a crap ton of whining and complaining from Zack not to abandon him, but also had way too many close encounters with Aerith on campus during the week. Thankfully, she never spotted him and went along with her business, but it definitely shaved some years off his life with the way his heart leapt up into his mouth out of anxiety and surprise every time he saw her.

"Cloud, mind explaining why you're hiding like this?" Tifa snorted in laughter as she tried to walk by his side, only for him to trail behind her instead. They were in the middle of heading towards the library to study. "You look real suspicious right now with the way you're just looking at the ground so intensely."

"Can't a guy watch where he's going?" Cloud muttered as he grudgingly looked up from his feet to respond to Tifa. "You dunno what kind of hazards might lurk on the floors."

"… You're an actual doofus."

"Deal with it."

Tifa patted his shoulder encouragingly as she giggled. "Didn't go with Zack on Tuesday and Thursday? You don't know how heartbroken Zack is with the loss of his trusty wingman."

"Then why did he get over me so quickly with Kunsel?" Cloud scoffed. "He moved on super fast; it's as if I never accompanied him in the first place. Plus, I'm sure Kunsel would do a better job—he's more tolerant of his cheesy ass anyway."

"You think? I don't know, I think you and Zack look cuter together though."

"… Are we even talking about wingman-ing anymore?"

The only response to his question was loud cackling from Tifa as she wiped a fake tear with a finger. Not wanting to inquire about what was going on in her wild imaginations, Cloud simply shook his head as a small smile tugged at his lips. Deciding that there were low chances that he would actually run into Aerith _again_ for the fifth time that week, he lowered his guard and relaxed.

… Which was a mistake because the moment he looked straight ahead in his path, his eyes locked on to very-familiar green ones. This time, they were looking right back at him. Then, she smiled as she gave him a shy wave.

"Aw, shit," Cloud muttered as he recognized the one and only.

"What's the ma—whoa," Tifa got cut off when Cloud placed an arm around her shoulders and steered her in the opposite direction away from the library. Her feet stumbled a bit to catch up with his pace before she gave him a puzzled look. "Mind telling me what you're doing?"

"I'm running away from something if it wasn't obvious," Cloud responded dryly as he let Tifa go. He felt a bit bad for avoiding Aerith so blatantly in front of her face, but it just had to be done; he had no intentions of breaking the bro code today. Plus, every time he thought about her, he thought about her ki—

_Don't think about it, Cloud,_ _**don't** _ _._

Having an idea about what was getting him all antsy, Tifa teasingly brought her head closer as she held a hand to the side of her mouth.

"Is it Zack's crush?" she half-whispered jokingly. To humor her, he brought his head closer too.

"You're real nosy, you know that?" he whispered back.

"You're an actual _doofus_ ," Tifa teasingly scowled as she bumped her shoulder against his. He did the same, all the while knowing that Aerith was probably watching them from behind. "I could help you out maybe if you could just tell me what happened last week."

"So that you can go gossip to Jessie? No thanks."

"You're no fun."

"Wasn't meant to be."

Tifa gave up trying to win in their little banter; Cloud was too stubborn for his own good to ever admit defeat. "So where are we going now? Seems like you're ditching the library."

Cloud sighed. "Don't worry, we'll head back to it soo— _oof!_ "

His hand instantly flew to his upper arm in pain when he felt something smack into it hard. Turning his head to the right, Cloud watched wide-eyed as Aerith stomped right past him, but not without giving him a nice slap with her book. He wasn't afraid to give her a silent, intense look of question, flabbergasted with how daring she was just to hit him like that out of nowhere. In return, she simply gave him a frown before she sharply turned her head the other way and stalked off, obviously not happy with the way he fled from her the moment he saw her. Before he could even say anything, she was too far ahead, never looking back once.

"Um, I think you just made her upset," Tifa stated the obvious with a snicker. "Maybe you shouldn't have ran away like that, you know, with your tail between your legs."

"My tail was _not_ between my legs," he spluttered, still a bit flustered from Aerith's sudden appearance. Maybe he shouldn't have made his escape so obvious; preserving the bro code was beginning to make him look like an asshole. Resisting the urge to text her an apology, Cloud merely groaned as he ruffled the hair at the back of his head. "How did I get involved in this?"

"I'd answer you if I knew what was going on," Tifa interjected in a singsong voice. She batted her eyelashes at him innocently, which didn't do much good in convincing him to spill.

"Forget it," he mumbled before he spun around on his heels and headed back towards the library. "Let's actually get some work done now, shall we?"

~.~.~

The next day, which officially marked the week since Aerith's drunk fiasco, Cloud thought he was finally going to have a Saturday to himself where he could just chill in his room, scroll through his phone, and do his work—just like any other peaceful weekend.

Until Zack crashed their apartment unannounced.

Receiving an unexpected text about how he was right outside their door already, Cloud groaned into his desk before he heaved himself up, put on some pants over his boxers, and dragged himself over to the door, not caring that his hair was an actual bird's nest. Swinging the door open, Cloud gave Zack the deadest expression ever as the raven-haired held up some drinks from the one and only flower café.

"What's up, Cloud?" Zack greeted brightly as he took it upon himself to enter the apartment. Cloud squinted his eyes—the sunlight was way too bright outside—before he closed the door and shot Zack a dubious look.

"Drop the drinks and get out," Cloud ordered sarcastically as Zack made himself at home on their sofa. "Every time you come over, I know something's up." The scent of coffee quickly infiltrated the air of the apartment as it steamed in the paper cups. "Bribery shall not be on your side today."

Zack held a hand to his chest dramatically as he feigned hurt. "Cloud, how could you! I'm just here to visit and treat my dear friends to some coffee! What's the crime here? Gosh."

"And what else?" The sky would shatter if Zack was saintly enough to come with gifts with no hidden intentions.

"… We're going bowling today—me, my friends, and your friends."

"My friends," Cloud repeated flatly as Zack laid the cards on the table. He crossed his arms as he leaned against the living room table. "Who are my friends?"

"You know, Tifa and the rest of this apartment!"

"Wow, and I'm the last one to know about this?"

"You'd only go if everyone else was on board the ship, which they _are_ ," grinned Zack as he gave Cloud two thumbs up. "Or else I wouldn't convince you otherwise; you're too much of an introvert to go anywhere noisy."

"You're right—go have fun, guys."

"No, c'mon, dude," Zack stood up as he came over to Cloud with his hands clapped together in a plea. "Midterm season is over and we all need a breather this week! It wouldn't be the same without you, hm, hm?"

"I'm not too keen on participating in the social scene this weekend," Cloud frowned. Especially with Zack's friends. While they were all nice people, they were a bit too wild for Cloud to handle. The last time he ever hung out with Zack's friends, he found himself aiding in vomit cleaning and trash collecting. During another one of their crazy parties (for some reason, business majors partied _hard_ ), one of his pals even ended up in the hospital for alcohol poisoning, so that night wasn't fun for anyone as they waited outside in their buzzed stupor for the safe news.

"Dude, it's _bowling_ ," Zack emphasized, knowing exactly what was going through his best friend's head. "We wouldn't dare go stupid in public area! I think."

"You're convincing me," Cloud scoffed sardonically.

"What's with all the commotion, it's only 1 p.m. guys. The morning is still alive and well." Jessie's loud complaint echoed in their short hallway as she emerged from her door, clad only in loose shorts and a black bralette. Like always, Cloud raised a hand up to cover his eyes with a scowl obvious on his face.

"Jessie, seriously, you live in a place full of guys—put some clothes on, damn it," he groaned as he put his hand down and gave her a disapproving glare. In response, she simply flipped him the finger before she whooped happily at the sight of hot, piping drinks.

"Yum, don't mind if I do," she giggled as she took one out of the holder and took a swig out of it. "What a great start to my day."

"Morning? What kind of sleep schedule are you guys running on in this apartment?" Zack questioned. Being the only one Cloud knew who still stuck to a regular twenty-four schedule, Zack clearly didn't share the sentiment of living life as a nocturnal. "Y'all crazy. But Jessie!"

"What? Ah, Zack, you're here. Hi!" Jessie finally noticed Zack's presence and greeted him, causing him to pout.

"I feel so welcomed, thanks," he joked, but he shook his head as he got to the point. "Jessie, do you remember bowling today?"

She wasn't helping Zack's case when she had to take a moment to ponder what he was talking about before the lightbulb lit up above her head. "Yes! At seven, right? Biggs is super down, and so is Tifa. Barret always tags along since he craves more social interaction than any of us here. I feel a bit bad that he's an eighth year PhD and everything but—"

"I heard that!" rumbled Barret's deep voice from behind his door. "Better not be shit talking me!"

"I don't need to hide even if I am!" Jessie hollered back. Zack sent Cloud a look, silently asking if his apartment was always like this. In response, Cloud simply gave one single nod.

"See, your friends are all going! Don't be such a loner and come join tonight. It'll be fun," Zack insisted as he gave Cloud his puppy eyes. "I'll be sad without you."

" _Pfft_ , when bribery doesn't work, you resort to kiss up?" Cloud rolled his eyes as he pushed himself off the table. "Fine, I'll go, seeing that everyone else is suddenly going. At least it's not a party."

Zack pumped a first in the air. "Woo! Cloud, you're not going to regret i—"

"On one condition," Cloud interrupted, stopping his celebration short.

Zack blinked as he took an apprehensive stance. "What is it?"

Cloud fumbled into his pockets to take out his phone. Tapping a few things on it, he showed his screen to Zack.

"Stop texting me every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, _please_ ," exasperated Cloud as he showed Zack the texts he sent him all week. Jessie had to hold in her laughter as she drank her coffee. "I already told you—I'm _not_ going anymore. Stop blowing up my phone so early in the morning; I'm not even awake, man."

"Okay, fine," Zack whimpered as he pushed the phone away from his face. "Can you blame a guy for trying? It's—"

"'Not the same without me,'" he quoted sardonically, knowing fully well what kind of things Zack would say in an attempt to guilt trip him. "Whatever. I go bowling and you stop texting, alright?"

"Got it, got it. But Cloud."

"What?"

Zack placed his hands on his hips, signaling to Cloud the incoming interrogation. "You were willing last week! What happened? Don't lie to me—it's a pretty nice place to chill in."

"Yeah, for you," Cloud retorted, but he got a bit nervous as he rubbed a shoulder. Feeling skittish with the subject, Cloud ended it with a shake of his head and said, "I don't have the energy to go so many times a week with you, alright?" He felt bad for not telling Zack any of the things that had happened, including stalker boy and drunk disaster, but because he was closing the book between him and Aerith for good by eliminating their chances of meeting, he decided that it'd be better if he just didn't say anything.

"Fine, I get it," Zack sighed, allowing relief to flood through Cloud. "But bowling! Don't flake!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, now let me do my work so that I can actually go," Cloud shooed him away with a hand towards the door. Zack whooped one more time in victory before he checked himself out and left the apartment. Shutting the door, Cloud let out a heavy breath and trudged back towards his room.

"Seems like you got fired as a wingman," Jessie mused as she sat in one of the chairs of the living room table, "Not doing five-star work, I see."

"Seems like you're damn blind," Cloud sneered as he stuffed his hands into his sweats. "I _quit_." He glanced over at the drinks that Zack bought over and eyed the flowers that were taped on the side. Heading over to Jessie, he ripped the yellow lily attached to her cup before he detached the other flowers.

Raising an eyebrow, Jessie didn't say anything as she watched him take out a semi-crumpled water bottle from their recycling bin, filled it with water, and put the flowers stems into it. He sighed as he put the makeshift flower vase atop their counter before he made his retreat into his room.

"Didn't know you were a flower boy," Jessie mused with a smirk as she finished her coffee and dumped the cup into the trash. Cloud clicked his tongue in response before he opened his door.

"It'd be a waste to throw them away," was all he offered before he entered his room and shut his door.

~.~.~

When it was nearing seven, Cloud reluctantly stopped his work so that he could shower and get ready. Since it had been a while since he went out to a big social gathering, he put a bit more effort in his appearance as he sifted through his closet for something decent to wear. Deciding on just regular black jeans and a grey long-sleeve paired with a black bomber, Cloud went over to the mirror as he dried the rest of his spiky hair.

"Never goes down," he mumbled as he pressed a hand on top his head, only for his blond locks to poof back up. Not wanting to bother anymore with it, he changed his silver piercing with one of a black cross before he grabbed his keys and wallet. When he tripped over some of his clothes—his room wasn't as tidy this week—he picked it up and grimaced. It was his maroon jacket he wore last week.

"You definitely need a wash after everything you put me through," he spoke to it before he lazily chucked it over to his laundry basket and left his room. Already by the front door was Tifa and the rest of his apartment mates, who waited for him as their ride.

"Wow, someone's looking handsome today," Tifa let out a low whistle as she teasingly re-adjusted his jacket. "Are you trying to impress someone tonight?"

"Sorry that I don't plan on looking like a slob in front of actual people today," he swatted her hand off before he stuffed his feet into his white shoes. With a lot of baking soda and laundry detergent, he had managed to get rid of the coffee stains; he didn't need any dry-cleaning service. "Why am I the one driving? I'm always the one driving."

"You're the only one with a car right now, you rust bucket," Barret snorted. "Mines out for repair today."

"Ah, that's right—after you ran into a curb yesterday," smirked Cloud as he opened the front door. "And Bigg's—"

"Is at home," he interjected. "Mom got T-boned by some elderly driver at a neighborhood intersection. She's having ownership over my car for a week."

"You're just _destined_ to be our driver, aren't you?" Jessie snickered as they filed out of the apartment. She locked the door before the five of them went towards the elevator. "Just accept your fate and stop nagging."

"Let's stop with the excuses and admit the truth," Cloud sighed, "You guys just want to get drunk again."

"Oh, hell no, I'm not losing to _anybody_ today!" Tifa exclaimed as she flexed her biceps. "You can't hit strikes when you're drunk!"

"Right back at 'cha," Jessie growled competitively as the two females gave each other fire with their eyes. "They called me the bowling champion back in high school, you know!"

"With the way you're talking, I guess you never saw a real bowler," Barret challenged as he held up his huge arms. "Watch and learn tonight from the prodigy, kiddos."

Cloud sighed as he ignored all of his friends' silly comments as the elevator door closed and brought them down to the lower floors. Packing into his car, they drove noisily to the bowling alley to meet up with Zack and all of his friends.

When he arrived, the last person he expected to see was Aerith.

 _Aw, shit_ , Cloud mentally groaned as he slowed down a bit to hide behind the figures of his friends. Why was she here? _Is it too late to dip?_

"Finally, you guys are here!" Zack greeted them as he got his bowling shoes from the front counter.

_Yup, too late._

"So like, I'll head home now, alright?" Cloud muttered next to Tifa, but she pinched him on the arm as she tugged him by the sleeve of his jacket.

"Hold on there. Let's not have the presence of a single girl ruin our fun night with everyone," Tifa shot him a quizzical, yet challenging look. "Unless you're that scared of losing, wimp."

Cloud narrowed his eyes at his childhood friend, not amused by her diss. "Did you just call me a wimp?"

"So what if I did?"

"Pray you won't be my opponent tonight," and he tugged his sleeve out of her hold as he willed the courage to step up and greet Zack.

"Man, you're looking different from this afternoon!" Zack gave him a fist-bump as he pointed to the two lanes. "We'll be back there; go get your shoes!"

"I see a certain someone over there," Cloud pointed out uneasily as he avoided looking at her for too long. Thankfully, she was too absorbed in talking with Zack's friends to notice his arrival. "What's up with that? How come I didn't hear about this?"

"Oh, Aerith? Yo, me too, I didn't expect her to come. I got some updates for you," Zack grinned, already making Cloud feel a bit unsettled. "I just threw an invite today when she was working, and she said she would think about it. Because of her vague answer, I didn't think she'd come, but she did!"

"Haha," Cloud chuckled nervously, not sure if he was supposed to feel happy for his friend. "Why do you think she came?"

" _Pfft_ , of course it's because she wants to hang out with me more!"

Cloud died a little bit inside, both from a mixture of embarrassment and guilt for his friend. Zack flexed his muscles mockingly as he smiled toothily. "Do I look like teacher material, man? She told me that she never went bowling before—it's a sign, I'm telling you!"

"… A sign of what?'

"To get closer to her!"

Cloud licked his lips before he continued his string of nervous laughter. "Sure."

"She's looking real cute today, don't you think? All those trips to Coffee & Flowers have been worth it, man," Zack nodded happily as he trailed behind Cloud's group as they got their shoes. "And we've _really_ been hitting it off lately online too. She's getting some more time to reply!"

"Is that so?" Cloud forced a response. When he felt a tingle down his back, he knew that his sixth sense was telling him how Aerith had finally noticed him. However, he didn't turn to look back. "Seems like your relationship is going smoothly."

"Yup. The next thing is to actually get her interested, but we're getting there. I mean, who can resist a dreamboat like me?"

Cloud knew that Zack was just kidding—he was a modest guy after all—but it still didn't stop him from make a sound of disgust.

"Alright, keep daydreaming."

Once everyone got their bowling shoes, they followed Zack over to the two lanes. Cloud braced himself to be under Aerith's full attention as they joined the large group.

The bowling alley glowed with a dark, red hue as multiple TV screens sat side-by-side above the end of the lanes. With music playing not too loudly in the background and bar busy with people with their drinks, the place shimmered with weekend energy as the sounds of bowling balls being thrown and pins getting knocked down resonated throughout the alley.

"Cloud!"

Cloud managed a small, tight-lipped smile towards Kunsel as they greeted each other by clasping each other's hands and bumping shoulders.

"Hey, good to see you," he said as he gave everyone else in Zack's party a wave of his hand. He even gave Aerith one before he stepped back so that his friends could get their turn in saying hi.

Being not much of a chatterbox like the rest of his friends, Cloud sat down as he focused his attention on changing into the bowling shoes. He felt weird, and the reason why wasn't a mystery. Feeling extremely conscious now that he was in the presence of the person he had avoided for the whole entire week, he felt his nervousness heighten to an all-time new as he fumbled with the shoelaces. However, no matter how much he told himself to just ignore the urge, he couldn't help but look up and sneak a glance towards her way.

Wearing a more modest outfit than last week, she adorned black leggings with a simple sky-blue top. Her purse was strapped across her chest while bangles decorated her wrists. With pearl earrings dangling from her lobes, Aerith had her wavy hair down, which stood in stark contrast to her usual, braided look.

But it didn't matter. Hair braided or not braided, she still looked pretty.

_Stop looking._

"Cloud, come here!" Zack called for him, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"What is it?"

When Cloud stood up to see what was up, he hadn't expected to get pulled over by Zack and placed in front of Aerith. Cloud blinked as his sapphire eyes finally locked onto Aerith's emerald ones in close proximity.

"After all this time, it completely slipped my mind: I never introduced you two to each other before!" the raven-haired yipped as he placed his hands on his hips. "Aerith doesn't really know anybody here, so it's good to get some names out!" Zack pulled Cloud closer by the shoulders, earning a grunt of complaint from him. "Cloud, this is Aerith, and Aerith, this is Cloud, one of my bestest friends!"

"Hi," Aerith gave him a soft smile, but it didn't really meet her eyes as she stuck out a hand for formality. Cloud looked at it for a split second before he took it.

"Hey," he replied awkwardly, not sure what else to say as they got "acquainted" with each other. He let her go before his hand got all sweaty or something. Before the silence could settle in, Zack stepped in and saved the conversation, much to Cloud's relief.

"Now I know what's different about you, Aerith! You don't have your hair tied up like you usually do!" he exclaimed as he noticed the lack of restraint on her hair. "I never realized how long your hair really was."

"Ah," Aerith lightly laughed as she felt her brown, silky locks with her fingers. "It's because… _someone_ has my ribbon right now," and she gave him a secretive glance. "And I like tying my hair with it, so."

Cloud bit the inside of his cheek when he realized that _he_ was the one who had it. Not noticing his discomfort at all, Zack nodded approvingly as he gave Aerith a thumbs up. "It's a cute look! You should do it more often."

"Haha, thanks."

Cloud wasn't one to read a person's emotions with pinpoint accuracy—he wasn't sure if he could do it in general—but he didn't even need to try to know that Aerith was not too comfortable with Zack and his forwardness. Tucking some hair behind her ear, she opened her mouth to say more, but before she could, Zack got taken away to decide how teams would be split up. This left the two of them alone.

"… I have your ribbon," was the first thing he decided to break the ice with. He tried not to visibly react to how lame he sounded as he wondered why he didn't have anything else better to say. In response, Aerith only gave him a straight, impassive look.

"Like I didn't know that," she muttered as she looked away from him and towards the lanes. She seemed upset. "Any plans on giving it back?" Before he could say yes, she continued with, "Unless you want to continue running away from me, then sure, you can keep it."

Cloud winced as he felt the sharpness of her words, instantly getting drenched with guilt as he saw the pout that played at her lips. Half of him wanted to apologize, but the other half told him to just keep quiet or else his efforts to distance himself from her would be in vain. Now that they were together for the first time in a group setting, it wouldn't be too weird to talk to her, but he still felt… _wrong_. Especially with Zack in their company as well.

"I'll drop it off sometime next week. At your workplace," he offered weakly. "I didn't mean to take it last time. Sor—"

"Am I annoying?"

Cloud snapped his mouth shut as his brain processed what she just said. The hurt in her voice was evident, and he didn't know why he was even surprised—he had avoided her like the plague the entire week. Now that he saw the consequences of his actions right in front of his face, he truly realized how much of an asshole he had been to her.

Before he could even voice an apology out, his friends had called out to him.

"Cloud! Get your ass over here so I can knock it down like those pins!" Barret bellowed, bowling ball already in his hands. For some odd reason, he had his sunglasses on in the darkly lit area; it made him look like an idiot. Cloud tried to ignore him so that he could continue his conversation with Aerith, but he didn't stop. "Spikey, I'm gonna roll you down the lane!"

"Okay, dude, you're embarrassing me," Cloud turned his face around to shoot Barret a glare. The only thing he received back was a mischievous grin. When he turned back around, Aerith was already gone; she had sunken back over to Zack's side to talk with his friends.

"Seems like I'm not needed today." Tifa came over to his side and leaned an elbow on his shoulder. She was only able to do this because of her tall height. "What did you call me back in high school? Your personal pest control?"

"She's not a pest," Cloud mumbled as he retreated back to sit down.

"You know that's not what I'm calling her," Tifa rolled her eyes as they sat together on the red sofa. "But you get what I mean."

"I don't need your services tonight," Cloud sighed. He leaned his back fully on the hard yet bouncy material. "Before I even played a game, I already feel like an asshole. Great."

He didn't notice how Tifa frowned a bit as she considered his words.

"She likes you, doesn't she?"

Cloud's heart skipped a beat before he whipped his gaze over to Tifa, who had a knowing look on her face. He opened his mouth to say something—to deny it—but only air came out as he released a breath and knocked his head back against the sofa.

"I don't know," he groaned as he placed an arm over his eyes. "I don't know, so don't ask me. I don't even know what I did, so don't ask me that either."

Tifa only smiled, but she didn't stop there.

"Okay, so let me ask you another question. With the way you're worrying about her, are _you_ interested?"

Cloud blinked rapidly at Tifa; she did _not_ just ask him that question. He frowned, ready to make a statement that should've been obvious, but for some reason, nothing came up in his mind to outwardly deny it.

The real question was why he was taking so long to answer.

_Crap._

"Uh—"

"Okay, no," Tifa shook her head before she grimaced. "You're taking way too long to answer; I think it'd be better for both you and Zack if we just leave it at this. But, you're one great wingman," Tifa giggled as she bundled up her hair so that she could tie it up in a ponytail for bowling. "You somehow got your best friend's crush into you; never thought you had it in you, Cloud."

"You're making me sound like some casanova," Cloud replied dryly, not appreciating how Tifa was just poking fun at him at this point. However, he didn't blame her—he would be laughing at himself too if he could. "Thanks a lot."

When he naturally reached a hand out to help her with her ponytail, she pulled it out of his reach and stood up. He quirked an eyebrow up at her in question, but she simply gave him one back.

"You know, you should really start thinking more about the meaning behind your actions," she rolled her eyes as she looped her scrunchie through her long hair. When she finished, her ponytail was a bit lopsided, but she didn't really care. "Since I'm your childhood friend, I know you're just naturally a nice guy, but other people might not think that way."

"What are you implying?" he asked as he stood up with her. Zack had finished sorting the names.

"I'm _saying_ , that you should stop being so nice sometimes."

"I'm not nice."

"Right. Now go away. I hope you survive this first game, buddy."

"What are you talking about?"

Tifa pointed to the team names up on the screen. Looking up to see what she was talking about, Cloud rubbed half of his face in agony.

Through randomization, he had been put in the same team as Aerith.

_This is going to be a long, long night._


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise, here's another quick chapter c: It's not as long, but it's better than something? Hehe i pooped it out since it was supposed to be a part of the previous chapter, but had to cut the other chapter since it was getting too long. Love all the support I get from this fic! I wasn't expecting it since this is AU and it seems like this fandom isn't into AU too much (I think that's changing though hehe). I had a lot of fun writing this, so I hope you guys enjoy this chapter too!
> 
> Love all of you hehehehe ty for motivating me to write stories :))))

"Alright, we got one goal tonight, guys: destroy the enemy." Jessie nodded determinedly as her ponytail shook with every movement she made. "We may be enemies the next game, but we must focus on the _now._ "

"We got a high school champion here," Cloud deadpanned as he quoted Jessie from earlier. "We can't possibly lose."

Currently, Cloud was standing with his random team as they gathered in a circle and tested for the correct weight of their bowling ball. Jessie was the only one he was familiar with besides Aerith; the rest of their team of six came from Zack's social circle. Having never met them before, Cloud took it upon himself and all the social energy he had in his pitiful reserves to introduce himself.

"I'm Reno," the redhead first greeted as he shook Cloud's hand. "I've heard about you from Zack before." Then, he looked Cloud up and down before he smirked. "Gotta admit—you're pretty hot."

"Uh, thanks," Cloud responded awkwardly; he never had a guy call him hot before, but being with Zack brought along a bunch of new things.

"And I'm Rude. Like, that's my name: Rude," the man with scarce hair said after Reno's introduction. "Just in case you get confused."

"I got it," Cloud assured as he moved his hand over to shake Rude's. "I got a word as a name too, so we're on the same boat."

"And I'm Luxiere. I'm more of Kunsel's pal, but Zack just manages to pull me in anyway," the third guy greeted. "You seem to be the same; based on everything I've heard, Zack seems to drag you everywhere."

Cloud tried not to twitch his eye in irritation; he seemed to have some sort of reputation among Zack's group of friends that he didn't know of. Wondering what kind of witchcraft Zack concocted with his name, Cloud forced a small smile as he shook Luxiere's hand.

"I'd like to ask what Zack has said about me, but maybe I'd be better off not knowing."

Reno already got super friendly as he clapped Cloud on the back, chuckling as he shook his head knowingly.

"No worries, it's good stuff. Rest assured, it's not like we know your number or anything in case we're in a pickle." The frown that appeared on Cloud's face was immediate, earning a round of howling laughter from the redhead. "Kidding, kidding! Although, the one thing he says about you is your tough guy look. He wasn't lying!"

"But he's our little puppy," Jessie popped in and elbowed Cloud by the side lightly. "But he doesn't want to admit it. Jessie by the way," she pointed between herself and Cloud, "we're housemates!"

"Hello, I'm Aerith," the barista finally spoke up as she gave everybody a smile. Of course, Cloud didn't miss the way she barely spared him a look when she introduced herself to everyone. "I've never bowled before, so I'm really excited to try it out tonight!"

"Oh, we definitely know who you are," Cloud heard Rude mutter to Reno, but it escaped Aerith's ears as she smiled happily, completely oblivious about how all of Zack's friends already knew about her. _Can you be more obvious, Zack?_

"Hey, losers, can you take any longer picking a bowling ball?" yelped Zack from the other lane. Everyone else on the opposing team had already chosen theirs and were just waiting on the rest of them to finish up introductions. "I'm itching to knock some pins down already! Save the talking for later!"

At Zack's impatience, everyone finished up their greetings before they went over to the rack that lined with bowling balls of different weights and colors. Numbers were imprinted on the surface, indicating the heaviness of each. Remembering his number, Cloud effortlessly got his ball and placed it on the rack at their lane. However, everyone else took a while longer to individually test each ball.

"Why do all of these feel so heavy?" Luxiere grunted as he held one up before immediately putting it back onto the shelf. "Are they supposed to feel this way?"

"I'm feeling you, dude," Jessie grunted as she placed one back as well.

"That doesn't sound like the words of a high school champion," Cloud smirked as he went over and rolled the lightest one over to her on the metal bars. "Does it?"

"Watch and learn, buddy, watch and learn." But nonetheless, she accepted the ball and stalked back to their lane. In five minutes, everyone had chosen a ball.

Except Aerith.

Cloud watched as she stared at the large selection in wonder as she placed a hand below her chin, deep in thought as her eyes studied the bowling balls so intensely. He tried not to laugh at how silly she looked with the confused frown she had on her face over something so simple as she hesitantly rolled the balls around on the shelf.

Even though he really wanted to stay out of it, he couldn't help himself from coming over to her. There was something about her that he just couldn't leave alone.

"It's not rocket science," he remarked, jolting her out of her bent posture as she straightened up her back. Realizing how she was taking too long, she blushed a bit out of embarrassment underneath his gaze as she sighed.

"I feel like I'm making this harder than it should be."

"Couldn't agree more." Just like he did for Jessie, Cloud rolled over the lightest ball for her, which she took within her grasp uneasily. "Might seem heavy, but once you roll it, you'll get used to it."

"And we put our fingers in these holes here?" Aerith innocently tested it out as she put her thumb, index finger, and, oddly enough, her ring finger into the three holes, causing Cloud to laugh with no restraint.

"Why are you putting your ring finger in instead of your middle? You're defying natural instinct here," he chuckled as he watched her awkward finger insertions. Never had he seen anyone hold a bowling ball the way she did. _She's something else._

But honestly, he secretly thought it was really cute.

"Stop making fun of me," she pouted as she took her fingers out and hugged the ball to her chest. Her cheeks still stained red as her eyes finally pulled up to meet his. "I haven't done this stuff before."

"Hm?" Cloud tilted his head a bit in question, wondering what got her to think that—he wasn't making fun of her—but he felt it unnecessary to correct, so he didn't even bother. However, he should've.

"I thought you were avoiding me, hm? Are you done?" she questioned. While her tone was a lot less serious and more playful than earlier, it still struck Cloud at a sensitive spot. Although, even with the brighter voice, he could still tell that it bothered her with the way her eyes directed themselves to the side, unable to keep contact with his. "Tired of having some random, annoying girl just—"

"Hey, it's not like that," Cloud interrupted her rant, not wanting her to keep misunderstanding.

"… It's not?"

It pricked at him a bit for some reason knowing that she had these kinds of thoughts. His brain strung together many words in an attempt to apologize and perhaps even explain very, very vaguely his reasons why he had been an asshole, but with the whole bowling environment just drowning their senses, it didn't feel appropriate to have such a conversation right there and then. Instead, he directed the subject somewhere else.

"Why did you come here? You don't really know anyone here, and knowing Zack, you probably knew his invite wasn't serious nor pressing." He sighed when he saw his friends just rolling the bowling ball back and forth with each other like play kids. "We're all a bunch of goons. And how are you going to get home? Don't tell me you didn't plan again."

Aerith fumbled with her ball a bit at his sudden onslaught of questions, looking a bit guilty with all the inconvenience she caused him last week.

"I didn't plan," she quietly admitted. "I came here straight after work. I'm sure the bus will still run by the time we're done."

Cloud stared at her, a part of him hoping that she was just kidding, but when a sheepish look dawned on her face, he tried not to show his disapproval with fingers to his temple.

"I still don't understand why you're here, but if you can have fun, sure." Knowing a little bit about how she didn't live the typical life of a college student, Cloud hoped that she could at least find some fun with a bunch of random strangers.

 _She needs it_ , he mentally sighed.

Thinking that it was the end of their mini-conversation—any longer and people would get suspicious—he made a notion to return to the lanes and begin the much-awaited game, but Aerith had one thing left to say before Cloud's mind nearly shut down for the night.

"I came because I thought I would see you." Her voice barely raised above a whisper as she hid her face behind the bowling ball. However, he could see how her ears turned red as she peeked over the ball and gave him a shy look. "And I did."

This time, his mouth shamelessly dropped open as he felt his mental functions halt to a still stop, eyes big at her. Lowering down the ball, she smiled at him as her face stained pink before she let out what he assumed was a tiny squeal and escaped his presence, leaving him to stare at the space where she was just at.

"Earth to Cloud, you there?" Biggs snapped him out of it as he hollered from the lane. "We're waiting on you, dude!"

"Coming!"

All of his efforts to forget about what had happened last week simmered into nothingness as he now lost the ability to look Aerith directly in the face. Instead, all he could feel was the weird fluttering in his chest as he replayed her words over and over again in his mind like a verse.

_I came because I thought I would see you._

And then came Tifa's words to place a stamp on the entire thing.

_She likes you, doesn't she?_

Cloud mindlessly sat on the red sofa as Reno went up first to begin the game. Subconsciously fumbling with the keys in his pocket, he tried to get it together and stop it with the overthinking, but now that Aerith had pulled another quick one on him, he couldn't get her out of his mind anymore.

 _Stop_. He shook his head as his name got highlighted on the screen, signaling his turn. Standing up, he took his ball off the rack as he forced himself to think about something else. Just like the beginning when he first saw her, he avoided her look as he positioned himself in the middle of the lane; this couldn't continue.

"You alright?" Jessie asked when he finished his turn with a spare and returned to his seat. Even with a strong start, his expression didn't seem to match the victory while everyone else cheered each other on. "You're looking quite constipated."

"I thought you were worried about me for a second," Cloud scoffed as he placed his elbows on his knees. He watched as Tifa hit a strike, although he wasn't surprised—she was oddly good at every sport that she played. "Should've known better."

"Hey, even though I bitch talk with you all the time, I've lived with you long enough to know when something's bothering you," Jessie rolled her eyes as she ruffled his hair affectionately. Swatting her hands away, he grimaced as he tried to fix his already-messy hair.

"Just got stuff on my mind," sighed Cloud. "Nothing serious."

"It's about Zack's girly friend over there, isn't it?" Jessie mused as she discreetly pointed her out. Cloud had to catch himself from laughing again with the way she threw the ball right into the gutter the moment she let it go. Of course, Zack took it upon himself to go into teacher-mode as he tried to show her the correct way to throw it. "Now that I see the real deal, I kind of understand what got Zack all dumb for her. She's pretty cute."

"I'm seriously scared of you and Tifa," Cloud muttered in slight awe, wondering what kind of powers the two shared when it came to this kind of stuff. No longer feeling any point in keeping the situation in the down-low, he didn't try denying it. "Is this the so-called 'woman's instincts'?"

"You're just dense," Jessie said matter-of-factly. For emphasis, she knocked the back of her middle finger on his head. "Like, is anything even in here? Hello?"

"Haha, so funny," he bit back sarcastically.

Jessie shook her head before she stood up and pulled him up with her by the wrists. Stumbling, he barely managed to keep himself from toppling over as his feet skidded against the ground.

"C'mon, we're all here to have fun with everyone. Turn that dumb frown of yours upside-down."

Cloud simply frowned even harder. "But—"

"Just forget whatever's in that hollow head of yours, geez!" Jessie let him go as she picked up her ball from the rack for her turn. "Today, you're Cloud, not Zack's wingman, alright? Loosen up already and just _bowl_. Maybe after you see the high school champion knock some pins, you'll be inspired."

"High school champion, my ass; you can barely hold the ball," Cloud snorted, but he nonetheless followed her advice. He _did_ like bowling after all; he didn't want to brood all night when it was already rare enough to have everyone here together outside their apartment. Deciding to worry about Aerith later, he joined his friends' spirits as Jessie went up for her turn.

"Did I hear someone earlier say they were a high school champion?" Barret mockingly said as he held a hand at his ear. "I can hear it all I want, but it's time to _see_ it!"

"We're already losing. Please rack up some points, because damn it, the three of us already threw it in the gutter!" Reno cheered as Jessie positioned herself in the middle of the lane. Rude, Luxiere, and Aerith adorned meek looks for being called out for their terrible plays. "They actually got a prodigy over there!"

"Thanks, dude!" Zack hollered.

"Not you, you dimwit, your black-haired friend!"

"Tifa, nice to meet you!" she grinned as she flexed her fingers. "This is only my second time!"

"Okay, we gotta have beginner's luck then too," Rude chuckled as he gave Aerith a hopeful glance. In response to the sudden weight of responsibility placed upon her shoulders, she let out a weak laugh.

"We'll see."

When Jessie managed to land a spare just like Cloud, Reno whooped excitedly as he clapped his hands thunderously. "We're going to make a comeback, guys, a comeback!"

"We didn't even go through the first round and we're already talking about a comeback," Cloud jokingly groaned.

"You should've been on our team," Tifa stuck her tongue out as she booed him with a thumbs down. "You're missing out."

"Zack, you _definitely_ rigged the teams!" Jessie complained defiantly. "All of you guys have bowled before; we got beginners!"

"Okay, if I really rigged the teams, then I would've put someone over there on my team already!" Zack fought back, not realizing how he was blatantly exposing himself and his crush for Aerith. Cloud received immense second-hand embarrassment as he sucked his lips in and tried not to visibly cringe. Everyone who was aware, which were Tifa, Jessie, and the rest of Zack's friends, were the same as they laughed awkwardly. Aerith, on the other hand, simply smiled a closed-mouth smile as she looked at the hands on her lap.

"Alright, Barret, land us another good one," Tifa patted his back to get him on the lane so that everyone can move on from Zack's slip-up.

"Nice," Cloud gave Jessie a high-five, which she clasped victoriously as she grinned. "Not a strike, but it's alright."

"Can't say anything completely nice, can you?" They let go of each other as they watched Barret. With two fingers, he pointed to his own and then at their team, especially towards Jessie and Cloud.

"Watch this, kiddos!"

Before Cloud could even say anything back, Barret and his big arm threw a hook shot right down the lane as his heavy ball curved before striking down all the pins right at the center. Everyone widened their eyes; there was actually somebody here who knew how to bowl.

"It's over," Rude placed a hand on his head as he shook his head defeatedly. "Over."

"It seems like someone over there has been going to the bowling alley by themselves!" Jessie spat some fire as she booed Barret. "I don't remember ever going enough times for you to get good like that!"

"She's kind of right," Biggs chuckled to Tifa as Barret and Jessie fought a verbal war. "I don't think he has enough friends besides us to go bowling with. I think most of his friends moved on with their PhD two years ago, so…"

"No more PhD jokes. I think Barret's going to be done with them sooner or later," Tifa laughed in response. Taking her ball, she stepped up for her turn again as the second round began.

"Have some mercy, alright?" Cloud sighed as he came closer to their lane. Tifa perked an eyebrow up at his suspicious behavior before she shooed him off with one hand.

"I do not feel comfortable with you just standing here, good sir," she said teasingly in a monotone. "I'd appreciate it if you could just back off over to your lane."

"No, it's okay, I think I'd like to stand here to observe your techniques," Cloud insisted, a small smirk tugging at his lips. Tifa knew that he was up to no good—he was just too competitive when it came to these kinds of things—but having no idea what he could even do, she didn't mind it as she placed her fingers into the holes and aimed for the center.

Right when she swung her arm for a release, Cloud clapped his hands super hard along with a stomp with his foot, successfully scaring her and causing her ball to steer off course and into the gutter. His team hooted in victory as a zero appeared for her first turn.

"Let's get it, Cloud, let's get it!" Reno exclaimed encouragingly. It had only been a few minutes, yet Cloud already had a good sense of Reno's character traits: loud, fun, and definitely wild. "Someone needs to nerf her!"

"Ugh, Cloud!" Tifa half-yelled, half-laughed as she stretched her arms out to grasp onto Cloud's shoulders, intent on shaking the life out of him. "You're freaking dirty! Give me back my turn!"

Cloud laughed as he struggled with her strong arms—she really needed to lay off the gym—and tried to pry her hands off as they swung around childishly around their two lanes. "I was just trying to cheer you on with a clap, what are you talking about?"

"Lies!"

"Geez, they're super close, aren't they? I wouldn't dare mess with someone so beautiful," Rude muttered in admiration, already entrapped by Tifa's presence as he watched her hold Cloud in a somewhat-painful-looking headlock. "Zack, why haven't you introduced me earlier?"

Aerith blinked as she observed the way Cloud pulled her grip off of him and pushed her back to her lane by the shoulders.

Returning to his own lane, Cloud high-fived both the excited Reno and Jessie before he sat himself back down for Rude's turn, not aware that he had sat right next to Aerith as he calmed down from his mini-wrestling match with Tifa. Once he realized, it was a bit too late to just suddenly stand back up and dip.

 _We're bowling right now in a group setting, it's fine to talk to her,_ he tried to convince himself, trying his best to look natural as he encouraged Rude to not land the ball in the gutter this time. _Think about it later; it's later's problem._

"Liar," he heard her mutter by his side. He hadn't meant to take such a sharp breath in, but he did as he uncomfortably turned towards her with a quizzical look.

"… Are you talking to me?" Cloud dared to question. He didn't know if she was trying to look cute or angry when another one of her pouts played at her lips, earning many questions from him; what did he do wrong this time?

"Who else is sitting here?" Aerith pointed out as she looked him in the eye. Cloud had a harder time than necessary maintaining eye contact with her, but he pulled himself together anyway. Before he could even ask her what he had been lying about, she muttered, "Womanizer."

"… What?" Cloud bent his eyebrows just a bit, completely lost as Aerith ran her hands through one side of her hair casually. No one called him a womanizer before. Rather, they all said he was too emotionally stupid to even handle a girl on a one-on-one basis, so he was deeply puzzled to get called one by a girl who he barely knew too—what kind of first impression was she getting from him? Remembering their conversation from last week, Cloud was about to ascertain once more that he did _not_ have a girlfriend and was about to add in a couple of cents on how _unromantic_ he was, but she beat him to it once more.

"Nothing, forget I said anything." Aerith put her two index fingers together as she fiddled with them nervously. "It's whatever."

"I usually don't hang onto dropped subjects, but what in the world are you talking about?" Cloud insisted, not exactly okay with her having this sort of impression of him. It would've made sense to not correct her; that way, she would take less interest in someone like him. However, it didn't feel right.

But what even felt right or wrong anymore?

"You're not as nice as I thought you were either," Aerith added more to the fire as she completely got Cloud hooked onto the subject now. "But I guess we really don't know each other enough."

"… I think I'm pretty nice," Cloud said without even thinking, greatly contrasting what he had said earlier to Tifa. He winced with how conceited that sounded, but he didn't take it back as he found himself charging head first again.

"… Yeah, you're still really nice."

 _Okay,_ _what?_ Cloud was beyond confused now as he tried to piece together her words in order to understand the situation, but his social skills weren't enough to sort her severely conflicting statements. Was she upset or not?

Seeing his perplexed expression, Aerith blinked at him before she suddenly dove her face into her two hands, freaking him out. Once more, he could see the tips of her ears turning red as she hid her face in embarrassment.

"Sorry, I'm just jealous," she confessed. She surprised him with how direct she was, but she didn't stop there. "Why did I even come here? I don't even know how to bowl, I don't know anyone here, and I'm just—ugh!"

Cloud grew concerned real quick. "Hey, hold u—"

"You have more of a mouth than I thought, but for some reason, I like it. And you have so many friends and so many people who like you and you're really close to cute girls and even if you say you don't have a girlfriend, I really don't understand how you don't because you're just really… cute." She then shot her head back up from her hands and waved at her face frantically with a hand. "Oh my God, I can't believe I just said all this. I legit just exploded, sorry, I'm, like, freaking you out, aren't I? Me and my mouth, I—"

Cloud hesitantly placed a hand on her shoulder to stop her, sapphire eyes wide as he tried to take in all her word vomit just now. Surprised from his touch, she snapped her head over to look at him, revealing all of her red glory as she burned with shame.

"I swear I usually don't act this weird," she continued to say in an attempt to save any face she had left. "I'm not weird. I swear."

"You're not weird," he repeated after her slowly. _You're cute._

"I'm not."

"You're not."

"…You know already, don't you?"

"Know what?"

"That I like you."

Out of all the places he could've received a confession at, he got one in the middle of a goddamn bowling alley with all of his friends present. Being surprised would've been a severe understatement as he tried to swallow down the large rock that now lodged adamantly in his throat. Mind going completely blank and senses tingling, Cloud had no idea what he looked like as he took in her expression. He would've laughed with the way she seemed more surprised than him at her bold statement if he wasn't so shocked.

Luckily, no one was paying attention to them too much as they got heated after Zack's second strike in a row, but if they continued to sit around here any longer, it was going to get suspicious.

"It's your turn," Cloud blurted inelegantly, unable to say anything more intelligent as her name got highlighted on the screen above. He didn't know if he seemed like a jerk with the way he steered their conversation to the left, but Aerith didn't seem to mind as she quickly stood up and separated herself from him to get her ball. However, he wasn't able to leave her alone for too long as he saw the way she fumbled with the heavy ball so clumsily.

"Okay, wait." Cloud stood up from the sofa as he joined her in the middle of the lane. Feeling no fear about interacting with her since they were on the same team—no one would ever suspect the kind of conversation they just had, right?—he stopped her from landing another shot in the gutter.

"W-What is it?" Aerith stuttered, cheeks still lightly flushed as she stared at him.

"Cloud, no cheating, you can't throw for her!" Zack bellowed from the side. "She gotta do it herself!"

"Who said I was throwing for her?" Cloud shot back, making sure his voice didn't crack. "You did a terrible job teaching her!"

Everyone laughed as Zack placed a hand over his chest in mock hurt, but he nevertheless smiled, completely oblivious about what had happened between the two.

"First of all," Cloud eyed her purse, "do you want to take that thing off? You can't possibly throw comfortably with this."

"But I don't want to leave it unattended though," she mumbled. Cloud blinked before he signaled with his hand.

"Give it to me, I'll hold it."

"But—"

"Do you want to hit a pin down or not?" He started to get snappy with her unintentionally, but it was because of how hyperactive his nerves were at the moment. She blinked, and without another word, Aerith pulled her purse over her head and handed it to him. Awkwardly, he swung it over a shoulder as he pointed to the ball. "You really suck at throwing this."

"Do you really have to rub it in my face like this?" Aerith huffed. "I got the hint already."

"It's because you keep bending your arm right when you let it go, so it just goes to the left and into the gutter. How about you… just keep it straight?"

"… You're no better than Zack."

 _Ouch._ Cloud blinked, wondering why that felt so offensive to him. Now feeling competitive in a different sense, he shook his head. "Keep the arm straight. Don't worry about aiming too much or else it'll just distract you."

Unconvinced, Aerith put her fingers into the hole and did exactly what he said, but her instincts just made it curve into the gutter again, earning groans from Jessie and Reno.

"Cloud, you're doing a terrible job teaching her too!" Jessie roared. "Hand the job over to me."

"I think we all have to agree that Jessie is _the_ worst teacher you can ever have," Biggs snorted, not at all supporting her case at all. "Just ignore her, Cloud."

"Since you're a beginner, you can throw it in the beginner way," Cloud suggested, but he wasn't too keen on the technique for her sake. "It's kind of embarrassing though."

"What's more embarrassing than making your team lose?" Aerith sighed as she straightened herself up and got her ball again. "What is it?"

"…" Cloud signaled for the ball, which she gave him. Then, he positioned it between his legs and pretended to throw it. Immediately, everyone laughed.

"You're seriously not teaching her the granny style, c'mon!" Tifa guffawed as she went over and gave him a slap on the shoulder. She then smiled warmly at Aerith. "You don't have to do what he says, just throw it normally."

"Don't listen to her, she's just the enemy," Cloud said with narrowed eyes at Tifa. Shooing her away with a hand, Cloud gave the ball back to Aerith. "But she's right. Just throw it normally if you want."

"… If I throw it, uh, _granny_ style, will I hit something?" asked Aerith, eyebrow quirked up. Cloud gave her a surprised look; was she considering it?

"I mean, yeah, but—"

He didn't need to say anything else as Aerith spread her legs apart and held the bowling ball with two hands between her knees. With one toss, the ball rolled slowly down the middle. Just when Cloud thought it was too weak to do anything, the ball hit the dead center and knocked down all the pins, causing all jaws to drop.

"Fuck embarrassment, there's no embarrassment in victory!" Reno hooted as Aerith's spare appeared on the screen. "Keep doing it! Rude, Luxiere, you guys do it too! I smell a comeback!"

"Good job, Aerith!" Zack cheered from the other lane. "I knew my teaching skills did something!"

"Let's not cheer for the opposite team here," Biggs chuckled.

"Geez, you actually hit it," Cloud said, astonished as he automatically held up a hand for a high-five. She looked it oddly before she giggled and slapped it happily.

"Reno's right; I don't really care as long as I hit it. Embarrassment doesn't stand in the way of victory!"

"You're bold."

"… Yeah, I guess I am."

The way she said it made him remember their earlier conversation, and he quickly reverted back to his unintelligent vocabulary as they sat back down on the red sofa. However, he couldn't take it anymore and stood right back up, earning an interrogative look from her. Then, it morphed into disappointment when she saw the conflicted expression on his face. Before she said anything, though, he took his turn to say it first.

"Let's… talk later." Cloud bit his bottom lip as he tried his hardest to look her in the eye, but failed. "I'll drive you home later."

Aerith frowned and shook her head. "It's okay, I don't want to trouble you anymore. Plus, you came with your friends, didn't you? It'd be weird if I joined and—"

"It'll just be the two of us. I'll make sure they get a ride home," he interjected. "Let's talk. But for now, let's just have fun, hm?"

Aerith slowly nodded before she smiled at him.

"Okay."

Tonight, he was going to make sure of it.

Then, he guiltily looked over at Zack before he made his resolve: he was going to set her and her feelings straight today. No matter what.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> On a side note, sorry if Aerith seems really meek or something in the recent chapters. She's a girl in love!! HAHAHA and pining for a guy who doesn't seem interested is hard for a girl man (AT LEAST FOR ME LOLOL) SO BEAR WITH THE CHARACTERIZATION FOR NOW :'))))


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HO HO HO, a surprise, quick update!
> 
> So for those who follow my twitter (a)cresciejo, I posted a sneakpeek of this chapter. however, even the sneakpeek hurt ME, THE WRITER LMAO, SO FOR ALL OF YOU GUYS, I PUMPED IT OUT EVEN THOUGH I HAVE TO WAKE UP IN LIKE 5 HOURS (and I still didn't do homework, rip me). Honestly, this ship has taken up so much of my time BUT I HAVE NO REGRETS (AND DONT WORRY ABOUT ME GUYS, I SOMEHOW MANAGE TO KEEP MY LIFE TOGETHER EVEN THOUGH IT MIGHT NOT SEEM LIKE IT).
> 
> OKAY SO NOW I MUST GO DO HOMEWORK. I LOVE ALL Y'ALL REVIEWS AND COMMENTS, IT'S BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE STILL READING THIS THAT I'M WRITING THIS, KISSES FOR ALL OF YOU
> 
> GOOD NIGHT XD

For the rest of the first game, Aerith kept hitting pins left and right with absolutely no shame with the way she threw it granny style. Because of her energy and spirits, she managed to get Rude and Luxiere to join her cause as well, greatly increasing their score compared to the beginning in the expense of their pride. However, even with their combined efforts, the opposite team still won; no one could beat Barret and his refined bowling skills nor Tifa's exceptional talent at every sport. It didn't help that Cloud and Jessie got too competitive with each other too despite being on the same team, so their score could've been a lot higher if the two hadn't made it their goal to mess each other up.

"I demand new teams!" Jessie exclaimed as she made an "x" mark with her arms. "Get me away from this guy and put me somewhere else!"

"For once, we agree on something," sighed Cloud, not too sure whether or not he could even survive the rest of the night if he got put on the same team as Jessie again. "I need actual teammates."

"These two are housemates?" Reno asked the rest of them as he watched the fire burn between the two. He let out a low whistle when Jessie mockingly threatened Cloud with a bowling ball. "That can't be too good."

"I'm her roommate, so you can just imagine," said Biggs. A shudder visibly ran through his body before he gave a small smile. "But they're a lot friendlier with each other than you think, even if, uh, they're out for each other's heads most of the time."

"Did I hear new teams? Yes, yes, I'm on it!" Zack busied himself with his phone as he pulled up a random team generator, so while he worked on the teams, everyone continued to happily chat with each other temporarily before the wars of bowling rivalry started up again.

Cloud managed to escape Jessie's wrath before he ended up next to Aerith again as they stood around scattered in the space between their two lanes. She had separated herself a little bit from everyone, but she was still able to listen in on their conversations as a smile played at her lips in joy. Now that they had been in each other's presence long enough with the fun of bowling keeping their minds off of her confession, Cloud got a bit more comfortable initiating a conversation with her since her earlier upset mood was now gone.

"You don't need to stand so far away, you know," he informed as he gauged their distance from the circle of friends. "We all have issues, but we're all nice—I think."

"Haha, I know. Everyone _is_ really nice!" she giggled as she clasped her hands together in front of her. "But I'm a lot shyer than you think, you know."

Unconvinced, Cloud rolled his eyes and stuffed his hands into his pockets. "You could've fooled me. I've never seen a barista so resilient before." He was talking about how she always seemed so cheerful and welcoming every time a customer ordered, but perhaps it was just for the customer service. Plus, there were also all her daring actions in the past with the way she dealt with the stalker, splashed his shoes, and drunk-called him.

She was anything _but_ shy.

"That's just a job," she noted matter-of-factly, laughing as she tucked some hair behind her ear. "I don't really have… a lot of friends, so I think I'm just a meek, awkward donut whenever I'm at a gathering—if I have the time for them at all."

 _Awkward donut?_ Finding her speech a bit quirky from time to time, Cloud replied, "Luckily for you, we're all a bunch of idiots."

"Really? I don't know, everyone seems really norm—"

The two of them stopped their conversation when Reno suddenly jumped onto Zack and latched onto his back, hooting as he rode him like some sort of bull.

"The night is still young; how about we hit ourselves up with some drinks!" Reno exclaimed as he waved an imaginary lasso above his head. Zack didn't make it any better because instead of pulling the redhead off of him, he humored Reno's act as he stopped with the team sorting momentarily and ran around the space, all the while lugging the additional weight on his back.

"Yee haw!" Zack bellowed.

"Normal," Aerith finished weakly, causing Cloud to shake his head.

"Zack and his friends are a bunch of brain cells grouped together," he explained, already forgetting how he was supposed to boost up his image as a cool guy instead of an idiot. He had long ditched the wingman act though seeing now how he did a terrible job at it. "They function as a single unit. I don't know if that's good or bad."

"Are you part of that group?" she teased as she pulled her hands behind her back and looked at him with a twinkle in her eyes. "I can't imagine, but I can try."

"Don't," he scoffed. "I'm a few degrees separated from his group; I try not to hang out with them too much. They're good people, but…" Cloud didn't need to explain anymore as Zack and Reno tumbled onto the floor together as they laughed obnoxiously, garnering a lot of attention from people at other lanes. "Yeah. I think you can see for yourself."

"I don't know, I think I can kind of see you doing that stuff," Aerith quipped. "I've learned a lot of things about you today, Mr. Competitive." Cloud felt his ego get scratched at as she referenced all his attempts to screw up his friends during the first round. "And you have quite the way with grilling people too," and she emphasized her point by opening and closing her fingers together to imitate his mouth before she giggled again.

"I've also learned that you can be a professional granny-style bowler," Cloud retorted. It was not his intention to be playful with her, but she really did have some sort of ability to make him forget and bring down his walls. "Forget about being a barista; sign up for some bowling competitions. I'm sure you'll make bigger money that way."

"You're actually meaner than you look," Aerith huffed as she gave him a shove on the arm, but he remained unmoved as he tried to keep down the smile that fought to appear on his mouth.

"I think I'm pretty nice to you," Cloud said, not realizing how he was admitting to his odd, preferential treatment towards her. He was usually snappy towards everyone, even with people who he barely met, but for some reason, he had been quite mellow with her and even went out of his way to endure many of the things she put him through despite not knowing her too well. He was a lot more awkward and clumsier with his words whenever he was with her too; if his friends ever saw this side of him, they'd make fun of him to no end.

"Haha, I'm just kidding. I know already," Aerith mused, "I already know how kind you are to everyone. No need to put up a front, you silly goose."

"Silly goose?" Cloud frowned, not liking the pet name she just gave him. "And it's not like that. With you, it's diff—" He immediately snapped his mouth shut before he let anything stupid slip out—something that happened way too often when he talked to her—but it was already too late as Aerith's smile grew even wider.

"Hm? What did you say? It's what with me?"

"Nothing," he said hotly.

He was saved from a potential fuck-up when Zack finally announced the teams for the second round, and for the rest of the night, the two were separated.

While Cloud was able to keep his mind off of her for the most part as the bowling wars continued to rage between every randomized team they were put in, he couldn't keep his eyes from wandering over to her from time to time. Everything he had done tonight was the complete opposite of his sworn promise. From talking to her and approaching her and just having plain fun with her, everything just made the guilt grow heavier and heavier on his shoulders once he realized how he wasn't supposed to do any of this. Being with her felt like a drug; it felt good just being next to her, but felt terrible after once he found some time to sit down and think about how he was doing all of this without Zack knowing.

 _Why am I like this?_ he mentally groaned as he sat back down onto the sofa and ran a tired hand through his hair. He wasn't supposed to feel this way towards Zack's girl. He barely even knew her, yet there was something about the way she smiled at him, the way she laughed, and the way she was just so spunky and daring with everything she did that got him all riled up. Initially quiet and shy because of the unknown environment, Aerith was quick to shed that front and openly laugh and interact with everyone. The way she proudly threw her bowling ball granny-style too raised everyone's spirits as they admired her bravado and lack of embarrassment, encouraging even Zack to join her cause. The two of them interacted a lot more normally than Cloud would've thought; Zack was less of a fool once he was in her actual presence instead of just hanging around in the flower café.

 _Then why me?_ If he looked at them closer, the two of them looked pretty good together. Zack and his tall height paired with Aerith's graceful form—he would've been glad if Zack could get with a girl like Aerith. That way, Cloud wouldn't have to deal with all of the crap his ex-girlfriends had given him in the past since the barista didn't seem batshit crazy like the others. But…

But what?

"Cloud, you've been thinking way too much for bowling."

Now in the same team as Tifa for the fourth round, Cloud prepared himself for another dose of a woman's instincts, something he had had enough of for tonight.

"What can I say, I love bowling," he sarcastically replied. "It's been fun being on the losing team for three times in a row now."

"Hey, we're on the same team with Barret this time. You can throw shots in the gutter and we'll probably still win," Tifa chuckled as the two of them watched the enthusiastic PhD land another strike. "Perhaps you can sit out and take this entire round to think, you philosopher."

"When will we go home? I'll do it once I get back." Cloud suppressed a yawn as his eyes got a bit watery. When he refocused his vision, his eyes found themselves coming back over to Aerith, who was now chatting enthusiastically with Zack. The two of them laughed over something Zack said before they cheered for Kunsel when it was his turn. Surprised that Zack wasn't a bumbling fool like him when he was Aerith, Cloud didn't notice the way Tifa followed his line of sight.

"Cloud, you can talk to him, you know."

Cloud snapped his head over to Tifa once he realized he was staring again before he frowned. "Talk to who? About what?"

Tifa held up a finger discreetly at Zack before she let it down. "The person you look at with starry eyes all the time."

"Your jokes are not funny," Cloud snorted, earning a round of giggles from Tifa before she shook her head.

"You're not one to just keep brooding like this," she said knowingly as she placed her elbow onto her thigh and leaned the side of her face on a palm, eyes mischievous as she looked at her handsome childhood friend. "I'm not one to keep butting into your business—"

"Oh, so we're getting the disclaimers now."

"—but it's hard not to look at you when you got a permanent scowl on your face. Geez, smile a bit more; I'm sure you scared half of Zack's friends away today."

Tifa wasn't wrong. Cloud noticed that Luxiere and his two other friends weren't that keen on striking a conversation with him while Reno and Rude were more on the social side. He had known Kunsel the same time as Zack, so Cloud wasn't _too_ awkward with the guy.

"I'm not that scary looking."

"You're _actually_ saying that." Tifa reached a hand up to push at the center of Cloud's forehead, eliciting another automatic frown as she rolled her eyes. "Let's have a muscle retraining program. At this rate, you're going to get wrinkles early in life." Then, she went straight to the point. "If you're starting to like her, just talk to Zack."

Cloud nearly choked on his saliva as he heavily cleared his throat.

"I do _not_ like her," Cloud denied, voice hoarse as he recovered it back. "You're kidding."

"I support whatever you do," Tifa jokingly patted his back, ignoring everything he was saying as her grin stretched wide on her face. "It's rare for you to be interested in a girl."

"I said I'm not interested in her," Cloud repeated, not understanding where Tifa was getting all this from. However, she didn't elaborate as she stood up for her turn, leaving him dumbfounded as she flexed her fingers.

"Well, just know that you could just talk to him if it comes down to it. It's not that hard. He's a pretty nice guy—he'd understand."

"What would he understand?" Cloud exasperated, desperate to get a straight answer only to receive a silly "toodaloo" from Tifa before she went up for her turn. Feeling that she was definitely taking advantage of their childhood friend status to mess with him with absolutely no fear, Cloud gave one last glare at her back before he got ready for his turn.

Finally, after a couple more rounds of bowling (Cloud had lost count already), everyone got tired and decided to call it a night. It was no surprise that every team that had Barret in it won, so the competition died down by the end once it was all over. Even with some defeats and chipped nails, it was no doubt that everyone had fun as Cloud's group of friends got acquainted with Zack's eccentric ones.

"How is it already past midnight?" Biggs yawned as he covered his mouth with a hand. "Time sure passes fast when you're having fun."

"Take me home, Zack, take me home," Reno slurred, being the only one who actually took in some alcohol. He nearly fell flat on his face if not for Rude and Kunsel holding him upright. "Take me home!"

"Alright, alright, let's arrange some rides. I mean, we can just go home the way we came here."

"Wait, er, Zack." Cloud awkwardly spoke up when everyone already began to go back to their designated driver. He took a quick glance at Aerith to make sure she was still there before he nervously rubbed the back of his neck. Zack gave him a curious look.

"What's up, buddy?"

"Is there any space among your friends for the people in my car? I have some stuff to do."

Cloud didn't miss the way all of his friends gave him bizarre looks, but he ignored them as Zack blinked at him in confusion.

"You have stuff to do at midnight on a Saturday," Zack stated, and it wasn't a question. However, he didn't implore further as he looked over at Kunsel. "You should have space, right?"

"Yeah, I got four in my SUV since I came with Luxiere and Tseng."

"Perfect, that should be enough. Wait!" Zack whipped his eyes over to Aerith, who smiled at him in question. "How are you going home, Aerith?"

"Oh, uh…" Aerith gave a glance back at Cloud as she pointed to a random direction, which was luckily towards the parking lot. "I came in my own car. I live near here anyway."

"So you're good on a ride too. Nice! Everyone, send me your money later!"

And so, as everyone dispersed, Cloud and Aerith pretended to go to their car, and when the coast was clear, they wound back to the entrance of the bowling alley.

"I'm really sorry," Aerith apologized the moment they met each other again. "I honestly didn't mean it to end this way; I really meant to take the bus."

"It's just a ride back, it's fine," Cloud said, hoping that he wouldn't have to repeat that phrase over and over again with her tonight. "It's a Saturday too; it's not like I sleep at this time or anything."

The awkwardness that settled in between them during the time they took to walk over to his car and to get in it was very unnerving. He could hear his breathing if he tried as he made sure not to have his nerves dictate his actions, or else he was just going to do something stupid again. It didn't help that Aerith succumbed to silence as well, which was the complete opposite of how she was an hour ago cheering for her teammates so loudly. Unable to comprehend how she could harbor these two personalities in one body, Cloud tried to think of something to say so that the silence didn't kill him slowly from the inside.

"So—"

"—So."

The both of them shut up when they both spoke up at the same time. Not wanting the usual back-and-forth exchange whenever this happened, Cloud inserted himself in before the awkwardness increased by a tenfold.

"Did you like bowling?" he asked, simple and short. His hand tapped onto her address from last week in the GPS before he hooked his phone onto the holder. "Since it was your first time and everything."

"It was super duper fun," Aerith excitedly replied back and clasped her hands in joy as Cloud got out of the parking lot and into the street. "I didn't know people could get so competitive! It was really funny to see everyone claw at each other and stuff and being all crazy."

"Um, I think our group is an exclusive and limited experience," he said, hoping that Aerith would realize how their gathering today shouldn't be used as a standard nor comparison for social gatherings in general. However, if today was her definition of fun, then so be it. "You really don't go out much?"

Before he knew it, he unintentionally turned their conversation into one where he could learn more about her.

"I don't," Aerith admitted, a bit embarrassed at the revelation. "I'm a bit too busy for these kinds of things—but it's not like I don't want to! There's many things I want to do as a college student."

"Such as?"

She held up a hand as she began to count off with her fingers. "There's going shopping, attending a night market or something, pulling all-nighters with friends—since it's boring to do them alone—studying at the library together, going to a concert, sitting at a coffee shop or something and drinking some coffee with someone, and—"

"Wait, hold up," Cloud interrupted her when she said a certain something that definitely didn't fit in with the rest. When he halted at a stoplight, he raised an eyebrow at her. "Sitting at a coffee shop? Really?"

"What, you think that just because I work at one means I've sat down in it and enjoyed a happy chat with a friend?" Aerith mused, finding it funny how surprised Cloud sounded. "I just work and leave. I don't have time to just stick around! Not that I have anyone to drink coffee with anyway. Unless…"

Cloud was glad his eyes were back on the road so that he didn't have to peer into Aerith's large and hopeful eyes.

"Unless what?" he asked uneasily.

"Unless someone actually takes up my treat for a cup of coffee," she said in a sing-song voice, making it obvious who she was talking about. Before Cloud could give his reply (not that he even planned one in advanced), she let out an "a-ha!" and took out her phone. "Speaking of payment, we have to pay Zack for bowling, right? Darn, time to check my bank account." She muttered the last part underneath her breath as she tapped on her phone, not meaning for Cloud to hear her thoughts about her finances out loud. When he heard a small and quiet hiss from her, he grew a bit concerned.

"You alright?"

"Haha, yeah," Aerith replied as she scrolled through a few things. "Having fun sure is expensive."

"… Do you want me to cover this for you?" If she had to check her bank account for something as simple as a milkshake, he couldn't imagine how much distress the bowling fee would give her. At his offer, Aerith furiously shook her head, a huge frown set across her forehead as she sent the money over to Zack.

"Heck no, I don't like owing people," rejected Aerith, obviously distasteful at the idea of Cloud just paying for her like that. "I should be responsible and pay for my own things, you know!"

"Not saying you would be irresponsible or anything if you didn't for this," Cloud assured, admiring her pride a little bit as he entered the freeway and began his forty-minute drive to her home from the bowling alley. "Not that I know what your full schedule looks like, but you seem to be working to the bone."

"Do I look that uptight with time?"

"Surprisingly, no. You do a good job not looking like it."

Which was true. Surprised that she still even had the energy she had during bowling, Cloud was amazed with the way she didn't seem to drop from all the work she had to do while remaining cheerful and positive. She still had the capacity to be nice towards everyone too. If he was her, he would probably be grumpy and snappy, no matter who he talked to after a long day of work.

"Gotta make the most out of the time I have not doing work, right?" she yipped. "Being a moody person would probably bring down my spirits for the next day, so I try not to think about my workload too much. How about you?"

Cloud wasn't expecting the conversation to turn towards him with her question. Unprepared, he said, "What?"

"I'm asking about you, silly. What major are you? Do you work?"

"I'm a kinesiology major," he answered, not used to talking about himself like this. He thought he had gone past this stage in freshman year. "And I do have work. I help in research with prosthetic limbs. A whole bunch of bioengineering stuff, but I think it'd help with my career."

"Which is?"

"… I'm interested in being a physical therapist. If my brain can't handle that, then I can just be some sort of sports trainer or something. Wouldn't mind doing that either."

"Fits you," she mused as she leaned her head against the head of the seat. "You seem very athletic." He didn't notice the way Aerith glanced over at the muscles of his forearms that were exposed by his rolled-up sleeves.

"And you're pre-med?"

"Oh, you knew?"

"Zack told me," Cloud said. He swore the air got a bit heavier when he mentioned his dear friend's name.

"Ah, well, he's right," she confirmed as she stretched her hands in front of her. Then, she looked out the window to gaze at the lights of the freeway whizzing past them by the side. "As you can guess, I'm a human bio major. Kind of basic, but it notches down the pre-requisites for med school."

"Something you like to do?" Cloud dared to ask. He knew that a lot of people were in it for the money, which wasn't too much of a bad incentive as long as they somewhat cared about the field, but it would be a plus-ten-year horror to go through if they couldn't find some enjoyment in it.

"Of course. Well, I am doing it for the money," replied Aerith as she read his mind. "But I like the idea of… healing people too. And just being able to help my community and stuff like that; it'd be very rewarding. I mean, you can relate, can't you?"

"Me?"

"Being a physical therapist and everything. I don't know much about it, but it's a job where you help people move and stuff, right? Like rehabilitation."

"More or less." He thought about it a little bit more to see if he could relate to the idea of helping people as much as Aerith claimed. Picking his career wasn't something he took a long time to think about. He was quite involved in high school with his track team, and since he wasn't really interested in any of the STEM majors nor social science ones, he picked the one that seemed the most involved with athletics. Much to his unironic surprise, his major was composed of way too many biology classes that taught of the body structure and organ systems. However, even if he had known before how science-y his major actually was, he still would've chosen it. After all, it wasn't too bad, and sharing the same major as Tifa made the classes go by easier.

"I'm not much of a people's person though," Cloud finally added more to his answer once he collected his thoughts. "So I don't really have a righteous reason like other pre-health majors. Like you."

"Oh, you could've fooled me," Aerith responded, a bit of surprise lacing her voice. "Even though you have this sort of cold image—something I just learned today, by the way—everyone still likes you, hm?"

"It's because they don't have anyone else to bully," Cloud scoffed, causing her to laugh a little bit.

"I think that makes you a people's person kind of. People are open with you, right? And they're not scared to pick at you."

"What a way to make bullying sound positive."

Cloud cracked a small smile when he heard more of Aerith's snickers from his remarks. He liked it—making her laugh.

 _But that's not what you're here for_ , a part of him reminded. _You're here to set it straight, remember?_

And just like that, his lighthearted mood with her got instantly killed.

The rest of the ride back to her place went silent when she fell asleep. Figuring that she was tired after a long day, Cloud didn't try to keep her awake. After all, it gave him a lot of time to think about what to say once he let her off. For Zack. For him.

But was it really for him?

"Aerith." He called out to her as he gently shook her awake by the shoulder. "You're home."

"Hm?" Aerith let out a small groan as she stretched her arms above her head and blinked her eyes awake. Looking out the window to affirm her location, she smiled as she pulled some hair out of her face.

"Thanks for driving me home," she giggled. However, her good spirits didn't last long when she heard what Cloud had to say next.

"No problem, but… this is the last time." Cloud bit his bottom lip as he turned off his engine and shifted the gear to park. With the sound of his car off, the silence that weighed between them suddenly felt heavy. He didn't dare look at her as he waited for her to say something.

"… What do you mean 'last time'?" The cheerfulness in her voice was gone too as they entered the talk that Cloud had been waiting for ever since her confession. Then, she tried to recover it as she forced a smile on her face. "Oh, I see. Yeah, I know, I'm sorry that I had you drive me home. It's a big hassle since it's so far, but next time, I'll—"

"Not just the ride. I meant this," and he made it clear as he slowly pointed at himself, and then at Aerith. She continued to stare at him, confused—it was as if she wanted him to say the actual words. If it was words she wanted, then it was words she was going to get. After all, Cloud Strife was known to be blunt, no matter who he was talking to.

So why wasn't he saying anything else?

"Is this a rejection? Ouch, I think it's hurting more than I thought it would," Aerith tried to cast off the heavy mood with her attempt at a lighthearted tone, but it faltered when her voice cracked a bit at the end. "Want to tell me why? Is it because I've been off-putting?"

"Off-putting?" He shouldn't have been the one asking questions, but he couldn't sit still until he clarified any potential misunderstandings that ran through her head like before. There shouldn't have been any need for clarification since it might've defeated the purpose of their conversation, but if he didn't give it to her, then he wouldn't be able to erase the feeling of being a complete jerk for the rest of his lifetime.

"Yeah, with the way I've been too forward and just plain… desperate," she explained. "Like just forcefully getting your number. And drunk-calling you, _kissing_ you," at this, Cloud tried not to visibly react, "and crashing your hangout with your friends today and getting jealous at one point. You looked really uncomfortable today too in the beginning. I'm really sorry."

Even in the darkly-lit space of his car, he could see the way she burned with embarrassment and shame as she shakily played with her hair with her fingers, eyes never leaving her lap. He didn't need half of his brain to know that this was probably the first time she ever went through something like this, and it made him feel a bit hotter knowing that he was her first, prompting him to slowly take off his jacket before he steamed in his own car.

"Don't be sorry," he finally said, wondering why his vocabulary was suddenly so lacking. "It's… fine."

"… I don't understand you. You're choosing the wrong time to be vague." Aerith looked up at him, trapping him underneath her probing and prodding gaze. "Tell it to me straight."

"You're not desperate. And you're not weird," he stated firmly, following her every command as he found himself just saying whatever at this point—it was all raw and unplanned. "I don't really mind everything you've done, and bowling today was fun with you. So you're apologizing for nothing."

He mentally groaned, feeling his plans to "tell it to her straight" just falling apart. Aerith wasn't helping either with the way her eyebrows furrowed, confused with all of the mixed signals he was giving her. He didn't blame her; he made himself confused.

"So what?" she half-whispered.

Not wanting to continue leading her on, he decided to give an answer to her confession as well as recite the script to every girl he had ever rejected.

"I don't think we know each other well enough," Cloud said hesitantly, making sure to gauge her reactions with every phrase he spoke. "I think you're a really nice girl and all, and you're definitely really funny, but… yeah, I don't really know you that well. Plus, I'm sure you don't know me well enough either. I think you really have an inaccurate picture of me right now."

_He's really kind. And real. And_ _**cute** _ _._

Definitely inaccurate.

"Then how about we get to know each other more then?" Aerith insisted, making his resolve harder. "I honestly don't think I have an inaccurate picture, but if you can feel more comfortable by getting to know me better, then let's?"

Cloud looked away from her as he trained his eyes outside his windshield, taking in great detail the license plate number of the car parked in front of his. Then, he said the final statement.

"Sorry, I'm not interested."

Never had he felt so bad for rejecting a girl before. It would usually end nicely and cleanly since he held no emotional attachment to the girls. A good chunk of them barely even spoke a word to him before they confessed too, so to say that Cloud never cared wouldn't be a lie nor an understatement. However, with Aerith, he was confused as to why their three—now four—moments of interactions were enough to get him spinning out of orbit. Now, as the silence weighed heavier than every boulder in Cosmo Canyon combined, he didn't dare look at her. He waited.

He waited for her to get sad and leave.

But he should've known that this was Aerith Gainsborough he was dealing with, not some typical girl.

"If you're not interested, then look me in the eyes and say it."

At the sound of her words, his head snapped towards her direction, blue eyes wide as his ears processed those brave words of hers. Instead of anger or sadness, there was only disappointment on her face, clear as day despite the dark illumination of his car.

"I'm serious," he tried again, but it didn't work with the way his eyes darted off to the side, unable to look straight at her with his deliverance.

When she said her next phrase, he knew he was caught.

"It's because of Zack, isn't it? He likes me, so you don't want to do anything?" They were questions, but they sounded so much like statements as her voice became flat and knowing. "I hope you know that I don't like him back."

"He's a nice guy," Cloud murmured, releasing the clenched hand he didn't know he held. "I think you should give him a chance—really."

"But I like _you._ "

Cloud found his head turning back up to look at her as soft hands slipped across his skin to hold onto his face, instantly heating his cheeks as he tried not to audibly make a sound of surprise. With the intimate space of his car, he could barely keep his heart rate down as she leaned over the armrest that separated the two of them.

"What are you doing?" he blurted out unintelligently as he backed away slowly, but she kept him there as she brought him closer.

"If you're really not interested, then push me away, and I'll go away. I promise—I'll never bother you again," whispered Aerith. Her cheeks blushed a soft red as the familiar scent of flowery-citrus wafted underneath his nose, making him slightly lightheaded as he watched her sweet, porcelain face inch closer and closer. Her orbs literally sparkled as he saw the image of himself in her green irises—so confused, flustered, and dazed.

"But if you're lying," she continued, "and you _are_ interested, then don't do anything. You don't have to do anything. You don't even have to say anything. Just… stay still."

Cloud felt his earlier resolve to reject her melt into nothingness as she hesitantly came closer. He was romantically dumb, but he wasn't dumb enough to not know what she was going to do as one of his hands clasped tightly the material of his pants at his thigh.

But other than that, no, he didn't do anything. He didn't even move by a single hair. Still as a rock, he watched as Aerith stopped at a certain distance, eyes turning up to look at his to see what his reaction was before smiling softly.

"You're still."

"…"

And she kissed him on the cheek again, right by the corner of his mouth—just a millimeter away from his lips.

Then, she pulled away, and heavy breaths escaped the both of them as she sat back down at her seat, giving him the personal space that he didn't even ask for yet.

"I got your answer," Aerith said breathily; it was obvious that she was feeling a lot of things at her chest with the way she held a fist against it. "It could've been a lot easier if you just said it with words, but I guess this is okay too," and she flashed him a shy smile. Gathering her belongings, she swung her purse across her chest as she opened the door, allowing fresh air to fly in.

Cloud still didn't say anything as he watched her step out. Bending over so that she could peek back in, Aerith gave him a shy wave goodbye.

"I'll text you later. Bye," she said.

"Bye," he weakly said back before she shut the door, scrambled away from his car, and nearly tripped on a rock as she disappeared into her apartment complex, leaving Cloud behind to think about what he just did—or, rather, _didn't_ do.

Then, his forehead and his steering wheel met in a rejoiceful reunion as he buried his face away in utter shock, wondering if the hole he dug himself was too deep to get out of now.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yaaaay an update after a week and a half! I got busy (and am still busy), but I managed to pump this chapter in between the time I had so that I didn't leave y'all waiting :)))) It's currently 3 am as I post this, so I would make this A/N longer if not for my ungodly, nightly activities. Love y'all, hope this chapter is gucci, and enjoy hehehehehe

Cloud held the pink ribbon up against the light as he stared at the ceiling of his room, mind empty as the long, soft fabric rested along side the length of his arm. He gave it another strong grip before he let it slip through his fingers and drop onto the floor, forgotten for a moment as he flipped onto his stomach and released a low, drawn-out groan into his pillow.

Aerith Gainsborough.

At this point, he didn't know what kind of thoughts he was supposed to harbor for the barista anymore. Saturday night left him completely dumb in the mind every time he thought about her and her kiss—a kiss that was way too close for comfort. If he had moved just by a centimeter, he would've met his lips with hers, and if that had happened, he wasn't sure if he could've kept the rest of his crumbling sanity intact.

"Why, why, why?" he drawled as he shot his head up from his pillow and stared at his white wall—as if that would give him the answer. He felt himself get hot as he re-imagined Aerith's shy, yet bold actions and the alluring look she had in her eyes when she approached closer and closer to his stunned face. Remembering the dark, enclosed space of his car didn't make it any better as he shoved his face back into his pillow, wondering if suffocation was the way to go.

_Just kidding._

He flipped onto his side as his eyes trained on the ribbon that was on the floor. Realizing that he wasn't getting anything done just moaning and groaning like this, Cloud snatched the ribbon off the ground, tossed it carelessly onto his table, and took out his phone. In this sort of predicament, there was only one person he could confide in.

 _Hey Biggs, you free?_ he texted.

The reply was instant.

_Dude, just knock on my door._

Cloud frowned at the reply, feeling a bit attacked before he sighed and did what he was told. Swinging the door to his room open, he crossed the short distance between the two rooms and gave the opposite door a firm knock. Biggs must've been waiting behind it the whole time because Cloud didn't get the chance to even give it a second knock before the door opened, revealing his freshly-shaven housemate.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Cloud Strife," smirked Biggs as he leaned his shoulder against the door frame. "It's not every day he summons my presence."

Cloud automatically peeked inside their room, surprised that they managed to keep it clean and neat. Underneath their roof, Jessie was by far the laziest person out of everyone. With sofa littered with her jackets every time she came home and dishes always clogging the sink, the future chemist added more chores to everyone's schedule, especially Cloud's. The only reason why he hadn't blown his top was because of her study habits. Although lazy, she was probably the most studious person among the four of them, hence the coffee he smelled brewing every morning even before he was awake. Cutting her some slack, Cloud took it upon himself to self-claim the title of "best housemate ever."

"I think you're the only sane person underneath this roof I can talk to anyway," Cloud responded to Biggs as he raised an eyebrow at Jessie. Playing her game console upside down on her bed, Jessie had her ponytail swinging against the floor as she gave herself some time to relax and mash the buttons vigorously.

"Does Pretty Boy need something? Ooo, heard us playing games and wanted to join?" Jessie laughed, eyes never leaving the screen as they darted rapidly back and forth. "Come, come—come inside!"

Cloud sighed. "I'll pass for today." Then, he directed his attention back to Biggs and jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "Was just wondering if you were free, Biggs."

Biggs perked an eyebrow up. "I am, but what's the occasion?"

"Er," Cloud fleetingly glanced at Jessie, not wanting to catch her ear with this sensitive topic. He had had enough of hers and Tifa's womanly instincts for the week. Wanting some male intuition this time around instead of getting push and pulled by the two girls, the blond stood in front of Biggs in hopes that he would get some much-needed opinions. Luckily for him, Biggs was quite aware of his surroundings and noticed his wary looks directed towards the brunette.

"Done with your morning classes? I'm feeling for some brunch—how about it?" Biggs grinned. "Want Barret to tag along?"

"Hell no, do I want Barret to come with," Cloud instantly scrunched up his face at the idea of Barret ever consoling him without calling him some sort of name in the process. "Plus, we can't waste anymore of his time; he needs as much of it as he can for his PhD."

"I shouldn't have moved in with a bunch of undergrads!" bellowed Barret's voice from behind his door. For some reason, he always seemed to have one ear in his room and one ear in the living room so that he could scan everyone's conversations for any PhD jokes. Rolling his eyes, Cloud ignored Barret's eavesdropping behavior and nodded at Biggs.

"Sure. Let me get ready."

Cloud took a shower before he slipped his legs through some pants and pulled a plain, white long sleeve over his head before rolling the sleeves up. Shaking his head (because that was the way he organized the mess he called hair), he grabbed his keys before he met Biggs out by the front door.

"When was the last time we hung out with just the two of us?" Biggs chuckled as the two of them stuffed their feet into their shoes. "We're always just together in groups, huh?"

"Because everyone's an extrovert," Cloud muttered in response. He opened the door and led the way downstairs to his car. "I'd like it if we hung out less, please."

"What do you even do with your day anyway? Also, what do you want to eat?"

The two of them decided on something simple, and in less than ten minutes, they sat at a pancake house located in downtown. Not feeling pancakes so late in the morning, Cloud settled with a cup of coffee and a couple of biscuits while Biggs ordered a whole combo with pancakes and bacon.

"At this point, I would've thought you'd be tired of coffee," Biggs smirked when Cloud received his cup of black coffee. The blond raised a brow in question as he put in a bunch of cream and sugar into the bitter drink.

"And why's that?"

"Coffee and Flowers?"

Upon the utterance of that name, Cloud tried not to visibly twitch an eye as he swirled his drink. Then, he realized something.

"Um, how do you know about that?"

"Cloud, c'mon, I'm Jessie's roommate. What did you expect?"

Cloud hefted a heavy sigh, wondering why he ever thought Jessie would pass up on the opportunity to gossip, especially with something that was right up her alley. It didn't help that Zack seemed completely open to the idea of getting his crush exposed and discussed about behind his back either—the guy was just too nice and easygoing to do anything. Heck, at this rate, Cloud wouldn't be surprised if there was a Let's-Help-Zack-Get-The-Girl committee forming by the end of this week.

"How much do you know?"

Cloud should've waited for Biggs's response first before he took the first sip of his coffee, for he disgustingly spat it back into his cup the moment his ears processed the words.

"Oh, not much. Just that you like the same girl Zack likes. And that she likes you back."

"I do _not_ like her," Cloud immediately spluttered once he cleaned his mouth with a napkin. Thankfully, he didn't spit back a whole mouthful. Deeming the coffee still drinkable, Cloud took a proper sip this time before he shook his head to make the point clear. "You're wrong."

"From what I saw four days ago at bowling, you could've fooled me," Biggs rolled his eyes. When his food came, he eagerly started cutting his pancake into slices, but he didn't stop zeroing in on the topic. Cloud had approached him for some advice for the same exact subject, but planned to under a hypothetical illusion. However, remaining anonymous wasn't going to work anymore if Biggs was going to be the first one to bring it up. "If you really wanted to do a good job wingman-ing, then you shouldn't have been so obvious, you know."

"Obvious about what?" Clearly, Cloud did not understand what Biggs was suggesting.

"Obvious with how much you guys like each other, buddy."

"Look, I don't like h—forget it, no one listens to what I say anyway," Cloud muttered grumpily, truly wondering whether he _was_ fun to pick on by his friends per Aerith's words. He didn't expect Biggs to be one to talk about stuff like this either, but he figured he was Jessie-influenced. "Do tell though—what is 'obvious'?"

"Typical—love makes you blind, doesn't it?"

"Biggs—"

"I've never seen you have fun like that, you know," Biggs interjected as he spoke with a mouthful of food. At least he kept it in his mouth, unlike his roommate. "Cloud Strife's laughter that could rival Zack's cheerful one is a force to be reckoned with; even Tifa probably can't get that sort of energy out of you. That Aerith girl must've ensnared you _hard._ "

"Nothing was different on Saturday," Cloud stated firmly as he kept it short and simple. After all, he had made sure to treat Aerith just like any other teammate that night—he wasn't going to do anything stupid in front of Zack—but now, as he received the "really?" look from Biggs, who momentarily paused in his chewing just to give him a stare-down, he began to doubt himself. Did he really act differently with her that night?

"C'mon, you know me—I wouldn't kid around with this just to mess with you," Biggs assured, knowing fully well how Cloud allowed himself to get easily pushed around by Zack and the girls. "And if you're worried that Zack noticed something, don't worry. I wouldn't have noticed anything if Jessie hadn't told me, and you know how the guy is—kind of oblivious."

At this, Cloud snorted in stifled laughter, happy to share an opinion about his lovestruck friend. However, his mirth didn't last long as he sighed, making sure it was long and lengthy so that maybe, just maybe, he could expel all the confusion bubbling at his chest at the thought of Aerith. Noticing the conflict etched against his forehead with his eyebrows, Biggs shook his head before smiling a bit.

"It's okay to like her, you know. If Tifa hadn't pointed it out, I wouldn't have seen the way you kept looking at her during bowling, dude. And it's not like she's Zack's. I'm sure she wouldn't be happy either if you kept putting him into the equation like this. That's kind of rude, not going to lie."

"I don't like… her." The sentence died in Cloud's mouth, completely losing its previous strength and rigidness. Repeating himself didn't make him feel better by the slightest—it actually made him feel worse. Seeing how Biggs was poorly unconvinced as well, Cloud dropped the act, but he wasn't going to outwardly admit to anything just yet.

"… Alright, so like, I have this _friend._ "

Biggs blinked before he dropped his fork and knife, smirking as he crossed his arms and, thankfully, did Cloud a favor by playing along with this overused charade. Cloud knew there was no point in putting things under a hypothetical sense like this anymore x, but it was better than referring to himself.

"So what's wrong with this _friend_ of yours, eh?"

"He's kind of—not really—but _kind_ of interested in this girl," Cloud framed his words carefully, feeling like a complete fool acting so skittish about the topic like some middle schooler, but he wasn't going to let this brunch go to waste. He came for some insight, and he was going to walk out with some, even at the expense of his pride. "He's interested, but he's not sure if he should go for it."

"I mean, is this girl interested in him?"

"I… think? I mean," Cloud sucked his lips in, feeling a bit hot as he remembered the times Aerith had kissed him as evidence along with her daring confession. "Yes, she is."

"Then what is your friend waiting for? Just _go_ ," Biggs laughed as he saw Cloud's mortified look. "What? C'mon, if she's single, she's cute, and she's not raising red flags, then I think that's an okay in my book."

"I don't think it's that simple," Cloud said uneasily, now curious about how Biggs dealt with _his_ love life.

"Hey, it seems complicated, but guess what?" Biggs leaned in closer towards the center of the table for a more suspenseful effect. Then, he whispered, "It's not. Trust me—I would know."

"Don't tell me you're like Zack."

"Oh, Zack _definitely_ knows how simple it is. Look at how many girlfriends he has gone through already. But no, I'm not. I've had only, like, two relationships in college. They were nice."

Cloud perked an eyebrow up, knowing Biggs's single status since the time they met each other. "And what happened?"

Biggs shrugged, not troubled at all as he thought back to his previous partners. "Just normal things. Personalities didn't match, schedules didn't align—just that normal stuff. Nothing too crazy."

"That doesn't sound simple to me."

"I didn't say a relationship was simple," Biggs laughed, "I said getting one is. _Pfft_ , if relationships themselves were simple, then this whole world might as well be forever monogamous."

"I mean, that's the issue I'm—I mean, my _friend_ —is having," Cloud insisted, making sure to remain straight-faced despite his little slip-up. "He doesn't really know this girl too well. Isn't that kind of a bad thing?"

"…? Then get to know her then."

"But—"

"Cloud, this isn't rocket science." Biggs waved his fork mockingly in front of Cloud before he stabbed a piece of bacon and popped it into his mouth. "If you don't know someone, what do you do?"

"You get to know them, but—"

"You get to know them, yes," Biggs nodded approvingly, making Cloud feel like he was getting some sort of lecture on love as he stared at his professor blankly. "And you may wonder what kind of things you gotta do to 'get to know them,'" Biggs quoted the air, knife and fork still in hand before he flipped the utensils back onto the plate. "Hm?"

"Even if I sound like a complete idiot right now," Cloud began, eyes narrowed slightly at his housemate, "I know how the whole gist works, thanks a lot."

"Sorry, sorry, just making sure you know. But why the resistance? You—I mean, your friend—shouldn't think about this for too long or else his brain might actually overload."

"The thing is," Cloud put two fingers to his temple, ready to just lay it flat on the table. "His close friend also likes the same girl. And he met the girl through him too, so my friend doesn't know what to do."

"… The situation still doesn't seem to change for me."

"You're joking." Cloud shot Biggs an incredulous look, wondering if the guy was just kidding, but Biggs merely shrugged, not at all fazed with the added information.

"Dude, if your friend likes the girl, and she's single, she's cute, and she's not raising any red flags, I see nothing wrong," Biggs repeated his earlier statement as he nodded proudly at his own words in humor, earning a dead look from Cloud as the blond tried to understand where the future political scientist was coming from. "Sure, maybe his friend might be a little bit _oof_ about it once he finds out, but if he's really a good friend, realizes that he's _not_ going to get the girl and that she's better with you—I mean, with your friend," Cloud simply glared at him at this, knowing how he was just doing this on purpose now, "then there you have it. Clean and simple."

"If what you're saying applies, then we wouldn't be having any wars, would we?" deadpanned Cloud. "Disagreements wouldn't be a thing—or, rather, wouldn't be solved so easily."

"Depends on the people. If we're talking about wars here, then isn't that just a matter of bad leaders?"

Knowing better not to debate with one of the most skilled debaters on campus—Biggs wasn't president of the speech and debate club for no reason—Cloud let his housemate's logic sink in as he let out a small hum of thought.

Maybe he _was_ thinking about this too much.

"But Zack—"

"Zack will probably yield for the best friend who is always pulling his neck out to help him in odd situations," Biggs stated matter-of-factly. "Cloud Strife simply doesn't get into a relationship one day out of nowhere. If it ever happens, I believe it's an event to be celebrated."

Cloud didn't even notice how Biggs dropped the charade as he groaned into both of his hands, coffee and biscuits forgotten as he tried to put everything together. He tried to think of a time where Zack and him ever got into a fight, only to think up nothing. Even when his rabid girlfriends threw slaps and accusations at him, Zack never raised his voice nor even frowned for too long. Instead, he would just give nervous chuckles as he took all the beating, all the while trying to keep up that dumb smile of his.

An idiot—that was who Zack Fair was. A big, nice idiot.

"You think it's okay?" Cloud asked one more time for assurance. Biggs gave him a thumbs up.

"Just talk to Zack. I don't think he would bite."

"You know, it was a good idea to talk to you, Biggs. You're probably the most level-headed out of all of us," Cloud chuckled, showing his appreciation for his dear housemate who kept everything under control in their apartment. "You make things that don't make sense make, well, _sense._ "

"I'm not in the speech and debate team for nothing," Biggs swiped underneath his nose with a finger, "We get the weirdest of topics—gotta make your side seem believable, right? Look, I've had to debate on whether or not bar soap is better than body wash. I'm ready to grill any subject you throw at me. By the way," Biggs pointed his knife at Cloud this time. "I think you'd be a good addition to the team. We all know how your mouth works."

"Nice try," Cloud scoffed when Biggs slipped in the recruitment. "Sorry, but I don't think debate is my thing; I'd probably show my unintentional bias in any argument, if anything. Also, I think body wash is better than bar soap, by the way."

Once Biggs finished his brunch, the two of them headed back to Cloud's car to go back home. While Cloud felt a little bit better reaching out to Biggs for advice, he still felt like he was back at square one, but at least he felt less of a moral guilt concerning his interactions with a certain girl. Wondering now how he was going to take his first steps in dealing with _whatever_ the situation was between him, Aerith, and Zack, Cloud didn't think he had to plan them yet until he received a text the moment he arrived home.

"Your phone vibrated," Biggs pointed out when Cloud parked his car into his designated parking space. "I think someone texted you."

"Oh, really? Thanks." Cloud turned off his engine and took his phone off the holder before he went into messages to see who it was.

_Aerith(:_

"Seems like you're not going back up anytime soon," Biggs clapped his shoulder encouragingly, having stolen a glance at his screen by accident. Cloud tilted his phone away from Biggs's view, but it was too late when he saw the smug smile on his face.

"Just go up first." Cloud muttered as he jerked his head towards the direction of the door. "Thanks for coming with me today."

"Anytime, bud."

And Biggs left.

Cloud sighed once Biggs entered the apartment complex. Putting his phone back in front of his eyes, he rubbed the side of his head with one hand as he analyzed the texts sent.

_Hey, I finished class, but I forgot that I didn't have work today. Are you free? I'm at CNF right now._

_I think now's a good time to get back what's mine(: Wanna return my ribbon?_

_Also, make sure you bring yourself~_

Her last line of messages got him all fluttery again, and he mentally berated himself for getting all antsy over one little text bubble. Seeing no reason to delay his response, he quickly typed out his reply before he went upstairs.

_I'm free. I'll be there in ten._

Once he fetched the cursed, pink ribbon that had ensnared his mind for a week, Cloud made his short trip over to Coffee & Flowers. Luckily, he didn't need to circle around the block like Zack always did to secure a parking spot. Once he got out with ribbon in his hand and keys inside his pocket, he went over to the entrance, where he saw Aerith tending to the pots of flowers that always stood outside the front of the flower café.

She hadn't noticed him yet as she gently caressed the petals of the yellow lily, feeling its smooth texture as a small smile played at her lips. Reaching over to the side where the water can was, Aerith stood up and sprinkled sprays of water on top of the many plants that decorated the shop. With the sunrays coming in at a certain angle, Cloud could see a rainbow as the droplets reflected the light like a prism.

"You guys are going to grow up to be super strong and healthy, alright!" he heard Aerith giggle as she gave them one last dose of water before she placed the water can back. Clapping her hands happily, she admired all the different colored blossoms as Cloud watched her in secret, amused.

_Is she talking to… flowers?_

When his shoes shifted against the ground on his way towards her, Aerith turned her head up at the sound, and he felt his heart leap a little when her smile grew wide at his arrival.

"Cloud! Heyo!" She waved him over excitedly as her ponytail swished along with her erratic movements. She then checked her wristwatch and gave him a thumbs up. "Wow, you really did come in ten! I thought you'd be a late person."

"Punctuality is an essential," scoffed Cloud, nervousness suddenly gone as he eased into her presence in front of her workplace. "Sets good impressions and doesn't irritate impatient people. Here," Cloud handed her ribbon over to her, which she took gratefully out of his hands.

The last thing he expected her to do when she received it was put it up to her nose and sniff it. Instantly frowning a bit at her odd behavior, he dared to question it. "Um, what are you doing?"

"I'm smelling it," Aerith stated the obvious before she grinned and stuffed it into her pocket. "And I'm satisfied."

"Satisfied?"

"Satisfied that it smells like you."

Cloud's face instantly boiled as his lips parted slightly in shock, blinking quite quickly as his brain reeled to process what she just said. The coy smile that graced her features didn't do much to help quell his nervousness as it shot back up to its original levels; he was a fool to think that he could just easily relax around her. Fumbling for his, again, short vocabulary book that somehow had ripped-out pages every time he needed it around her, Cloud shifted his weight over to one leg before he sighed.

"I'll get going now."

"Wait, what? Already?" Aerith's smile dropped as she frowned, clearly displeased at his early departure. She took a huge step forward so that she could stand closer to him face-to-face, pout forming at her mouth as she glared at him. Cloud wasn't sure whether or not she was trying to look tough or cute; it could've been either-or as he took a small step back for some distance.

"I thought I was just here to drop off your ribbon," he said simply. He then signaled towards her pocket with an upward tilt of his eyebrows. "There you go."

"Really?" She tilted her head inquisitively in response, eyes critical as she took in the slight uneasiness plastered on his face. "You didn't plan on sticking around?"

"For what?"

"To hang out with me!"

Cloud pursed his lips into a thin line when Aerith naturally slipped her arm around the crook of his elbow, pulling his side closer to hers as her smile returned at full force. He became conscious with the way his arm pressed against her chest and, without another word, gently pulled out of her hold, albeit a little bit forceful. He didn't notice the disappointment in her eyes as he shook his head and sighed for the nth time, not realizing how he was giving her mixed signals once more.

"I'm a bit busy," he lied smoothly. He didn't want to spend time with her today, not when he needed that time to let Biggs's words sink in along with his determination to not act like a fool whenever he was around her. Too unprepared whenever he was with her, he didn't want to go back home feeling dumb in the mind again when (if) she pulled another surprise attack on him today. "Maybe another time."

Of course, Cloud wasn't easy to read as Aerith's eyebrows furrowed deeper. Not knowing any of the thoughts that ran through his mind, she sucked her lips in before she nodded slowly.

"Alright, I get it." Her smile was still on her face, but it was forced. Never knowing how he managed to obtain the ability to read the different smiles a person could have, Cloud raised an eyebrow and tentatively grasped onto her shoulder.

"Another time," he repeated, making sure it sounded like a promise instead of an empty statement. "Really."

"Haha, sure. Thanks for delivering my ribbon for me!"

Aerith slipped out of his grasp as she took a step back, turned around, and made her way over to the bus stop, making him feel a little bit odd now that _she_ was the one who made the departure. He forgot to offer her a ride back home when he remembered how far her place was, but she was a little bit too far to call back again. Sighing, Cloud made his way to his car as well.

Only to turn back around when he heard skateboard wheels rolling, a crash, and a yelp of pain from behind him.

"Aerith?" Immediately whipping his head back, he nearly stumbled with his own steps when some skateboarder just rolled past his side, hogging the entirety of the already-narrow sidewalk as he brushed harshly against Cloud's shoulder. He didn't even apologize with his rough riding, and if Aerith wasn't on the floor tending to the scrapes on her knees, Cloud would've yelled some profanities after the guy.

"Ouch," Aerith hissed. She had her hand clamped against her knee, and when she opened up her palm to look at it, she grimaced at the blood that stained it. "That jerk!"

"Hey, hey, are you okay?" Cloud didn't need to think twice to come up to her and kneel down to her level to check on her, eyebrows creased in concern as he gauged the damage. He winced when he saw a small drop of blood travel down her pale skin and down her leg. Not hesitating for even a moment, Cloud rolled his sleeve inside-out up his arm and wiped the blood off her leg with the clean side of his shirt, surprising her greatly as she pushed him away.

"Wait, you don't have to dirty your shirt like that," she insisted, but he didn't listen to her as he dabbed away the blood, careful not to touch her actual wound.

"Did you not watch where you were going?" chided Cloud, not at all noticing the way he hiked up her dress higher above her leg so that he could tend to the scrapes on her knees better. It was only when Aerith squealed at the touch of his fingers against her thigh that he realized what he was doing and instantly backed his hands off, a bit of red touching his cheeks as he muttered a low "sorry."

"It's okay," Aerith said, voice a little bit higher than usual. She sighed as she looked at the angry red that graced her delicate skin, wondering what kind of luck she had to just get knocked over by a rude skateboarder. Without Cloud's help, she stood back up on her feet as she dusted her dress, making a face when the folds of her clothes brushed against her injuries. However, she sucked it up and shouldered her bag before she managed to give Cloud a smile. "I'm alright! No worries here. Sorry that you had to dirty your shirt. Um." She watched as her bus passed them, widening her eyes as she prepared to run. "That's my bus! I'll see you later, Cloud. And again, sorry about your shirt!" and she gave him a wave goodbye as she took a step forward to run after her bus.

However, Cloud wasn't having any of it as he grasped onto her wrist, pulling her back as he gave her an interrogative look.

"Excuse me, and where are you going?" he questioned, looking down at her knees before going back to her face. "Don't tell me you're going to go home like this?"

"I mean, where else would I go?" Aerith replied, genuinely curious as she tilted her head at him once more. "Oh, I mean, I guess I can go to the student health office, but I kind of don't want to walk back to campus…"

"I wouldn't make you do that either. Here," Cloud bit his bottom lip before he just went through with it, "Come over to my place. I'll help bandage you up."

At this Aerith widened her eyes before she shook her two hands to refuse. "It's fine, honestly! I don't want to trouble you, so don't wor—"

Cloud didn't listen to her as he slid his hand down and grasped onto hers, causing her to hiccup in surprise as he led her over to his car. In the middle of their short trip, Cloud kept kicking himself mentally in the shin at why he couldn't have just led her with a hand on her shoulder or her back or something—but _why_ by the hand? He could feel his hand getting extra hot. Luckily, before it got all disgusting and sweaty, his car appeared before him, and he let her go as he opened its door for her.

Peering inside his car hesitantly, Aerith accepted his offer and entered it. Cloud circled around before he entered as well, and together, the two of them headed back to his apartment.

Aerith, who had never been inside any of the off-campus apartments near the school, was excited to finally visit one, and her excitement showed on her face as Cloud led her in. Entertained that something so little could get her all starry-eyed, Cloud also felt a bit bad for her. If something as small as visiting an apartment she could've lived in could get her like this, he wondered how she'd react if she saw more of the world around her.

"Ooo, an elevator that works!" she giggled as she pressed the button for his floor. She freaked him out when she started jumping in it a little bit, causing his hand to fly over to the metal rail behind him as he gave her an odd look. "If I did this in my apartment building's elevator, I think it would snap!"

"Continue anymore and this one will snap too," he sighed, but he let her experience the bounciness anyway as they made their way up.

Once they were in front of his door, Aerith gave him bizarre look when he pressed his head against it and crossed his fingers. Unbeknownst to her, he was making a wish that none of his housemates were out and about in the living room. Cloud Strife bringing a girl home warranted ears pressed against the door to his room.

After three seconds of praying, he jammed his key into the knob before he twisted, and lo and behold, Biggs and Jessie were out chilling in the living room as one did their work while the other played games.

"Cloud, I need help!" Jessie hollered as she pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose as she scrunched her face up staring at her laptop screen. "I'm taking a goddamn physiology class, and this renal system shit is really—oh, why, _hello_."

Cloud tried not to groan out loud as her cat-like grin stretched across her face the moment her brown eyes landed on Aerith, who waved shyly at her and Biggs in greeting as she took her shoes off and closed the door behind her. He glared at Jessie before he told Aerith to wait just a little bit as he went over to answer her quick question.

"And why are you taking a physiology class in the first place, Ms. Chemist?" Cloud asked as he tilted her laptop screen and brought his head closer to look at it. "Unless you want to change majors."

"Tifa and I wanted to take the same class, and I needed an elective anyway, so why not? But I regret it completely," Jessie drawled as she crossed her arms and allowed Cloud to read the problem she was stuck on. "She's completely ahead of me when it comes to this stuff. Hey, you guys should take an upper-div chemistry class to keep me company, hm, hm?"

"You should've known better than to take a class Tifa suggested," Cloud chuckled before he tapped a finger against the answer. "She picks all the hardest classes 'cause apparently, it's 'fun.' Also, the answer is this because the flow of liquid through the nephrons goes in the opposite direction of the blood flow in the vasa recta."

"I barely understood what you just said, but I'll figure it out, thanks! Also," Jessie daringly pulled him by the neck so that she could whisper in his ear, "Make sure you're not too loud with Zack's girl, alright?"

Cloud instantly stood straight up as his ear burned, not from Jessie's whispering but from her lewd and very unnecessary comment. He gave her a fierce glare before he went back over to Aerith, who innocently gave him a smile, completely oblivious to their conversation as she waited for him to finish.

"Biggs, mind watching Jessie for me?" Cloud said with narrowed eyes at the girl, who cackled evilly as Biggs gave him a thumbs up, eyes never leaving the TV screen as he moved his avatar with the other hand on his controller.

"Gotcha."

Cloud led Aerith into his room, and while he would've liked to keep the door open, he knew his conversation would get eavesdropped on, so he shut it behind him as he went ahead and went through his closet for his first-aid kit. He wasn't too conscious having Aerith in his room, but the same couldn't be said for her as she grew nervous.

"You're surprising neat," she said. "I thought a boy's room would be messy."

"Don't believe in movie clichés," Cloud replied as he slid his closet closed and gestured with a hand for her to sit on his bed. "But I don't think it's a lie to say girls are cleaner than guys to some degree. You should've seen my freshman dorm—shit reeks."

"Aw, living in dorms seem fun," Aerith giggled. She lifted up the ends of her dress just enough to reveal her knees, which still burned red as plasma started to ooze out from her cuts. "I heard it was cramped, but still!"

"… You didn't get to live in the dorms either? I thought it's required."

"You can opt out of it if you talk to them about it. After all, it's expensive," Aerith sheepishly explained. Cloud let out a silent "ah" out of understanding before he kneeled in front of her legs and shook the disinfectant can, earning a slightly fearful look from her. "That stuff stings, doesn't it?"

"Prepare," was all he said before he sprayed it over her wounds, earning a hiss of pain from her as she refrained from just jerking away from his reach and away from the cursed aerosol. Once the pain subsided and all of her wounds got disinfected, Cloud carefully placed large band-aids across both knees before he pressed on them securely with his two palms.

"All done," he announced, managing a small, tight-lipped smile as he looked up at her. "Wasn't that bad, was it?"

"Thank you," Aerith murmured softly as she looked at his handy work. "You're always helping me out, aren't you? Now I feel really lame."

"Hey, there's no reason to feel like that." Cloud packed all his supplies back into his first-aid kit, but didn't move just yet to put it away. His smile grew just a little bit bigger for her when he saw her crestfallen look. "Things just happen out of your control, right?" He gave her one last pat on the knee before he made the notion to stand up and put away his first-aid kit, but before he could even take one step, she reached out and grabbed onto his hand, stopping him in his tracks. Then, she asked a question he hadn't expected her to ask.

"Are you nice to me because you're just nice to everyone? Or can I believe that there's something else?" Aerith shyly looked away from his eyes and directed her own towards the ground, but her hold on his hand didn't loosen as she anchored him there just in case he decided to run away again. "Do you not remember what happened on Saturday? Or are we just going to pretend like nothing happened, just like everything else before?"

Cloud wasn't mentally prepared to have this conversation with her now. He _just_ received some advice from Biggs just an hour ago; there was no way he could act on it so soon. Plus, he wanted to talk to Zack before anything happened— _if_ anything happened. However, with the looks of it now, Aerith didn't seem patient enough to wait for him, which he understood completely—he had been brushing her and her feelings off for almost two weeks now with mixed signals. Surely, that would frustrate anyone.

"What are you talking about?" he decided to play dumb, but he knew it was the wrong move when he felt her hand tighten on his. However, he kept it going anyway, wanting as much time as he could get so that he could properly answer her the next time. "I'm not doing anything too nice. I'm just—"

"If you're going to eventually reject me later again, then stop being so soft with me," she sighed. "A girl's heart doesn't agree with her mind too much. If this keeps happening, then I… I'm just going to fall for you harder. Isn't that a little bit tragic?" She tried to lighten the mood with a small laugh, but it died in her mouth when she realized how it wasn't really working. It turned into a sigh before she defeatedly let go of his hand, not wanting to push him with this topic anymore. "Sorry, I'm just bumming you out with this over and over again, aren't I? But really, thanks—maybe I'll hit you up once I'm over you or something. I think you're a really nice friend to have since, well, you're really nice!"

When Aerith stood up to signal her exit, Cloud suddenly felt panic at the idea of her just giving up on him and leaving. Four days ago, this was exactly what he wanted, but things were suddenly different now in such a short time. His mind couldn't keep up with the rapid change of his heart, but at the same time, he couldn't bring himself to assure her that he just needed some time—not when Zack was still at the back of his mind like this.

But Zack was momentarily forgotten as he stopped her from reaching his door, blocking it with his body as he pressed his back against it and prevented her from leaving. His strange actions elicited an eyebrow raise from her, but she didn't say anything as she waited for him to explain himself.

"What do you even like about me?" he blurted out without thinking. It was _not_ what he intended to say—he didn't have any words planned out to begin with—but his brain went along with his mouth as he licked his lips nervously before continuing. "I mean, we didn't even properly meet until Saturday a few days ago. I still don't see why."

Aerith's gaze softened when she realized how genuine he was with his confusion about this issue. She smiled a tiny smile as she shakily felt her long ponytail before she gave him her answer.

"I hinted it many times before, but if you really want me to… say it again—"

"—sorry."

"—then I can. It's okay. Do you want to sit down instead of just guarding the door?" She waved towards his bed again before he nodded.

"Right."

He awkwardly removed himself from the door before he followed her lead and went over to his bed. The springs creaked slightly as both of their weights pressed against the mattress. Making sure there was a good distance between them, Cloud scooted to the side a bit when she sat a tiny bit closer than he would've liked. Thankfully, Aerith respected his space as she remained unmoved from her position.

"Okay, now that we're just formally sitting here, I can't just say it," Aerith giggled into her hand as her cheeks flushed bravely. She wasn't scared to show him how red she was as her eyes twinkled, and it made his chest soar so high. To see her suddenly so happy at the thought of discussing her feelings for him made him feel all bubbly like a slow-fizzing, carbonated drink. "Don't look at me like that."

"Like what?"

"Like you really want to know."

Cloud looked away as he cleared his throat. She saved him from saying anything when she continued, but he wasn't sure if she was actually trying to save him or kill him instead.

"I like you because you're really sweet and kind," she began, and he swore if he didn't quell the rate of his heart, he was going to start getting all weird and breathy. "I first noticed you in the library when you were just like this," and she imitated him that day by typing crazily on an imaginary keyboard in the air, "and I just thought you were really cute—and good-looking."

"So you _did_ see me that day," Cloud crossed his arms, now feeling some relief now that the mystery was solved. Then, he remembered how awful both his physical and mental state was at that time as he crammed that paper and grew slightly embarrassed that _that_ was where she made her first impression of him. Cute? Good-looking? _No._

"Yup! And then the next day, I see you again with Zack at my workplace—what a coincidence, right? So, I'm a stupid romantic and thought fate had something to do with it, but of course, I thought it really was a coincidence. But I don't think it was just coincidence anymore when we kept bumping into each other. And then it all began there."

"… I see."

"Unconvinced? Here, I'll continue."

"Um, no, it's quite alright, I—"

"You helped me out when you didn't need to. You have an odd way of showing how nice you are, which I think is really adorable, but at the end, you really are genuine with the way you say the right things at the right time. And even when I saw your mean side during bowling last weekend, all your friends really enjoyed having you there, and seeing you loved by so many people is really… _charming._ "

Aerith squealed into her hands, unable to believe that she was saying all this with Cloud right beside her as she spilled her heart out. Awkwardly, he reached over, grabbed his pillow, and offered it to her, which she accepted gratefully as she hugged the life out of it as a way to vent out all her feelings. However, he shouldn't have given it to her if he knew she would use it against him.

"You smell really nice too. Ah, your pillow—I can die happy."

"Stop joking like that," he said, a bit flustered as he watched the way she buried her face into it.

She sighed dreamily as she laid the side of her face on it, looking straight at him as a silly smile graced her features. Gone was the disappointment she harbored just a few minutes ago as she relished the feeling of telling the person she liked why she liked them—even if he was a bit unresponsive.

"My reasons are not complicated, if you still don't understand why even though I just told you mostly everything," Aerith concluded, finally calming down a bit as she took in his face that now contorted in more confusion than ever before. "When you like a person, you can just like them without a reason. I get good feelings from you, so even if you say I don't know you that well, I… know enough to, well, _know_ that you're a good person. And do you know what the greatest reason of them all is?"

"… What is it?"

"You never judged me. Not even for one instant," Aerith half-whispered, jade eyes bright and probing as she locked onto his cobalt ones. "And I think that's all I could ever ask for from anyone around here."

Cloud froze when Aerith moved her head from his pillow and onto his shoulder. His room became silent as the two basked in each other's presence with only the soft sounds of their breathing audible to their ears. Her head fidgeted a little bit before she found a comfortable position, but she didn't say anything as she allowed him to absorb her second confession—one that was a lot more in-depth and heartfelt compared to the one in the bowling alley. Instead of a whole crowd of people screaming and cheering for each other, it was just them two in his room—quiet, still, and oddly tranquil.

The peace was broken, however, when Aerith suddenly reached out, wrapped her arms around his neck, and pulled him down with her onto his bed, causing him to let out a small yelp out of surprise as he crashed against her on his own sheets.

"What the—" Cloud pushed himself up by the elbows, hard-blinking as her pretty face suddenly appeared so much closer than before. Realizing how he was just hovering over her, he tried to get up, only to be entrapped by the two arms around his neck.

"I gave you my answer—it's your turn," she said, face so majestic as she blinked her dark eyelashes at him. Instantly flipping the switch from shy to brazen, Aerith began to go into surprise-attack mode, something he had feared earlier would happen if he stayed with her any second longer.

"Really?" Cloud managed to croak out, frown clear on his forehead as he gave her a slightly exasperated look, but it took all of his willpower to not let the redness travel to his ears and invade the entire length of his neck. "Now let me go before I— _oof_."

Cloud had to tilt his head back a little bit when Aerith tugged him closer, insistent on an answer as she narrowed her eyes jokingly at him. It would've been nice if he said something—anything—instead of just leaving her hanging, and he knew that too.

_But Zack._

"I'll let you go once you tell me what you like about me."

"I don't like you," he instantly denied, but regretted it the moment those words left his mouth. However, it didn't seem to affect Aerith as she continued to smile at him, unconvinced with the way he was losing his usual cool composure with the outrageous blush on his face.

"But you let me kiss you on Saturday."

"That was just—"

"Are you going to let me kiss you again?" And without another warning, Aerith leaned up and gave him another kiss on the cheek, and he _definitely_ felt it this time as she pressed her lips firmly against his skin. Head falling back against the mattress, she giggled at his shocked expression. "Do you want another one?"

Unable to say anything, he unexpectantly dropped his face into his bed at the space above her shoulder as he let out a small groan, not caring anymore about their close proximity as he hid his face away from her sight. His hair tickled the side of her neck as all her boldness dissipated, only to have it replaced with surprise as she let him go and allowed her hands fall from his neck.

"Cloud?"

"Give me some time." Finally released, he let himself roll off of her and onto his side, facing her again as she turned onto her side as well to look at him. An expectant expression dawned on her as she processed the meaning of his words, mouth open as she made sure she heard right.

"What does that mean?" Aerith whispered, hands subconsciously clutching at his sheets as she studied the way his bangs fell so effortlessly against his forehead and shaded the ocean in his eyes. He was just so handsome—it made her heart clench painfully when a guy like him had a personality to boot too.

"It means what it means," Cloud curtly answered, not wanting to explain himself. With the two of them just laying side-by-side with each other on his bed, he found it difficult to make complete sentences, especially when he was making sure he didn't have any weird thoughts as he admired all of her prettiness up close. "There's your answer—so that you don't have to feel anxious anymore."

The sweetness in his gentle voice was enough to get Aerith to put the pillow in between them just so that she could hide her face and squeal. The sparks that threatened to make their chests explode rumbled wildly as Aerith fought to catch her breath, enormously moved with how he had said all of this just to make her feel better about it.

Once she had calmed herself back down, she removed the pillow to look at him again. He did the same as he lazily perked an eyebrow up, wondering what was going through her mind as he felt himself get super comfy just laying with her like this. Then, it made him question—why was he making all of this so difficult for himself? There was no reason he should feel guilty. It was just him and her—just the two of them. She liked him and he…

He liked her.

Aerith scooted a little bit closer, just close enough to feel some of his hair tickle her forehead. He remained unmoved, but he was completely aware with what she was doing as her eyes unintentionally darted over to his mouth before they went back up to his eyes. Just when he was about to flutter his eyes closed and just, as Biggs would say, _go_ , something unexpected came knocking down the door to his apartment.

"I'm here! Did someone call for me? Cloud, buddy, I'm here to give you some company!"

Cloud widened his eyes, instantly shooting back upright as he recognized that voice.

_Zack._

Then, he looked at Aerith, who gave him a concerned look as she sat back up with him.

_Oh no._

Finally, it came—the real panic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gotta add in some bro moments between Biggs and Cloud xD I hope he seemed different with Biggs with the way I wrote their conversation!! HAHA


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof, it's been a hot month since I last updated! Sorry guys, things are suddenly just picking up with my second summer session of classes compared to the first five weeks! I just finished my first round of work, but I got a second round ready to just bulldozer me over lol. However, I still managed to squeeze in this chapter, although a bit shorter than normal. STILL I DIDNT WANT TO KEEP Y'ALL WAITING SO HERE WE GO, CH11 AT THE FAMILIAR TIME OF 4 AM HE HE HE HE (dw guys im okay fr xddd hehe love u guys)
> 
> Enjoy!

Even though his friends were a bunch of doofuses, they still had their good points. That was the only reason why Cloud still even hung out with them. Tifa was his childhood friend—their bond was too thick to break, even with the teasing (torture) she would often give him. Biggs himself had no issues, and while Barret didn't stop with the name calling and the diss remarks, he was still someone nice to just sit down and have a drink with. Once the alcohol was in his system, he became a lot calmer, and was able to hold thoughtful, mature conversations. Jessie was Jessie—her rowdy and loud behavior did not pair well with Cloud's personality. However, even with their constant love-hate bantering, the two of them still got along knowing deep down that there was a strong friendship below all of the bitching they gave each other.

In summary, all of Cloud's friends were pretty good pals to have. So, it was a real shame for Cloud to rethink his highly-held opinions of them the moment he heard Zack's cheerful voice calling out for him in the living room, thereby signaling his impending doom.

"Oh no, they _didn't_ ," Cloud hissed as he jumped to his feet and looked around in panic. His blue eyes trained on Aerith, whose confusion was clear on her face as she watched his frantic movements.

"Um, is something wro—"

Cloud clamped a hand over her mouth, successfully silencing her as she raised an eyebrow up at him to question his strange behavior.

"Look, you can't be here," Cloud vaguely informed her. "You need to get outta here."

Aerith folded her arms across her chest as Cloud let his hand fall. The angle of her eyebrow didn't change as she continued to give him the "really?" look, one he didn't have the time to question as Zack continued to call for him.

"Cloud, baby, I'm here! The gang told me you wanted to hang out today, so I'm here!"

"Oh, so it's because Zack's here?"

He never heard Aerith's voice become so flat before as she sighed disappointedly. She shook her head before she said, "Well, if you want me out, let me just go out through the front door and I'll be go—whoa!"

Cloud pulled her back when she reached her hand for the knob, giving her a deranged look as she gave him a challenging one back. With the smile so cunning on her face, there was no doubt that she was taking this opportunity to mess with him.

"Just—just hide somewhere in my room, I'm going to kick Zack out and you can go," Cloud hurriedly instructed, but she didn't budge from her feet when he tried to lead her over to a closet or something.

"I don't wanna," she pouted. "Why do I have to hide from Zack? It's not like we're doing anything wrong."

"Look, I haven't even had the chance to talk to him yet," Cloud said as the panic in his voice increased with every second he wasn't attending to Zack. He could hear his friends—or, rather, the _devils_ —talking with him outside, and they couldn't stall him forever. "Just bear with it for a little while."

Aerith clasped her hands behind her back as she tilted her form at him, eyes curious as the grin on her face grew wider. "Talk? About what, hm?"

"About you and m—" Cloud snapped his jaw shut when he realized what he was about to say, but it was already too late as Aerith giggled softly, which oddly rang music to his ears despite the situation at hand. Then, she held up one index finger up.

"One date."

"One _what?_

Aerith tapped him on the nose, making him instinctively back away from her as he gave her another odd look. "I'll do what you want only on one condition: you take me out on a date!"

"Are you seriously doing this right no—"

"Zack!" Aerith went over to the door to holler his name, making Cloud instantly stretch a hand out from behind her to hold onto her mouth again.

" _Fine_ ," he hissed exasperatedly, "now go!" And Cloud ushered her over to his bed before he roughly threw his sheets on top of her. It was the perfect timing too because once the sheets aired out settled down, the door to his room burst open, revealing a happy Zack with some drinks in his hands.

"I've been calling out for you this whole time, man!" he exclaimed. "Didn't you hear me out there?"  
"Ever heard of knocking?" Cloud shot back, making sure he was acting naturally as he sat on the edge of his bed with phone in hand. Thankfully, Aerith had listened to him and remained still underneath the sheets. "What's with the sudden visit? Does it take long to shoot me a text?"

"Tifa and Jessie said you wanted to hang out though?" Zack questioned.

"… Tifa and Jessie, huh?" _Of course._

Deciding to deal with those two later, Cloud stood up and walked over to Zack, intent on getting him out of his room before anything else happened. "I'm actually quite busy today, so maybe another time."

Zack blinked. "Wait, seriously? Gosh, I even got everyone some drinks from Coffee & Flowers! Aerith wasn't working there today—I wonder where she went."

"Haha," Cloud laughed nervously, finding the whole situation so ironic as he tried to lead Zack out the door. "Maybe you'll see her next time—now do you mind getting out of my room?"

"Damn, why are you so jumpy, are you hiding something here?" and with his tall height, Zack peeked over Cloud's head to do a quick scan of his room. "Okay, okay, I get it, I'll get out!"

Cloud nearly pushed him out the room as he closed the door to it with a loud shut. Looking past the hallway, he could see his friends' heads pop out, eager to see what kind of events would unfold from their summoning of Zack. Of course, they all shrunk away when they saw the deadly glare on Cloud's face as him and Zack entered the living room. Tifa had arrived, backpack still hung on her back since she just finished classes.

"It's a Wednesday, but that doesn't mean we can't do something!" Jessie cheered joyously as she completely ignored the look of death from Cloud. "Midterms won't be coming for another two weeks—let's relax."

"Sorry to burst your bubble, but I'm in the middle of escorting Zack right out," he said through his teeth. "Because I'm _quite_ busy today."

"Yeah, we decided to study together today, didn't we?" Biggs finally jumped in to for the rescue as he turned off his console. "Sorry that you had to come all the way here, Zack. Perhaps during the weekend, we can all have some sort of game night again."

"Haha, no worries, no worries. I'm sorry for popping in all of a sudden," Zack chuckled. Cloud felt a bit bad now for just kicking Zack out. He made a mental note to make it up for the guy once everything settled down. However, surprised that Zack was so obedient in leaving to begin with, Cloud led him to the front door as he accepted the drinks.

"Really, you caught me at a bad time," Cloud said, guilty for having Zack come all the way over here for nothing. "Let's hang out once the weekend comes."

"Don't sweat it, don't sweat it. I'll leave you to your business," Zack said, and before Cloud could even say anything else, he quickly made his departure, causing Cloud to wonder what made Zack rush out when _he_ was the one urging him to leave.

And it wasn't because Zack saw some familiar brown hair sticking out from underneath Cloud's sheets or anything. No, not at all. So, as the raven-haired went down in the elevator, he swung his body back and forth on his feet and hummed a small tune under his breath.

"So that's how it's gonna be, huh?"

And with that, Zack went ahead and called up Kunsel. "Kunsel, my dude! Hey, you free? I'm feeling quite lonely!"

Back inside the apartment, Cloud shut the front door and pressed his back against it, releasing the breath he didn't know he was holding as he felt his nervousness die down. However, levels of irritation shot up as he looked straight into Jessie's and Tifa's slightly-guilty looks as he huffed a sigh and entered the living room again.

"Didn't know you guys were that low," he narrowed his eyes a bit, arms intimidatingly folded across his chest. "Care to explain?"

"Don't look at me, I just got here and played along. I didn't know we had a certain visitor." Tifa held up her two hands in surrender. She jerked her head over to Jessie, who now had her laptop closed as she placed her glasses atop her head. "If you wanna talk to the perpetrator, look over there."

"I'm just trying to help you out," Jessie mused as she snacked on a granola bar. "You know, by giving you a push. We all know the longer you keep this up, the uglier it's going to get."

"Right, like you're not trying to get some entertainment value out of my suffering," Cloud growled. He went over to give Jessie a headlock, earning choking laughter from her as she struggled to continue eating her granola bar. "Biggs, I thought we were buddies here? What happened to watching her?"

"I'd have to agree—you need to talk to Zack, bro. Think of today as a call to action," he smirked in response. "Best not to keep Zack out of the loop for too long."

"Wow, you guys are _evil._ "

When the door to his room tentatively opened, everyone stopped their chatting as Aerith peeked out from the hallway. She looked to see if the coast was clear before she revealed herself, hair slightly sticking out from being under the covers for so long. She blinked at Cloud, who let Jessie go as he remembered how Aerith was still here.

"Hi," she awkwardly greeted everyone again. She took a few more steps until she was in the presence of everyone, who studied her from head to toe before they each gave her a welcoming smile.

"It's the bowling champion!" Jessie whooped as she shot her fists in the air. "The one who carried us to victory! Hi there, don't mind us. We're just bullying Cloud over here. Wanna come join?"

"How about you give me an apology?" Cloud grunted as he left Jessie's side and went over to sit at the table that connected the living room and the kitchen. He let out another lengthy sigh as he rubbed his face with both his hands, feeling the fatigue from the panic episode as he felt some years get shaved off his life. Tifa, who was still standing by the table, patted his shoulder comfortably and gave Jessie a slightly disapproving look.

"What were you going to do if Zack actually found out?"

"Zack's too oblivious," Jessie waved off nonchalantly as she walked past Aerith and grabbed a water bottle from the fridge. She didn't seem to mind that Aerith was right there listening to everything they were saying. "I had faith that Pretty Boy could hide her—I just wanted to see him all panicked because Cloud Strife getting all flustered is a sight to see." Jessie's loud cackles echoed within the apartment as she sat herself in the middle of the living room and chugged half her bottle of water. "But enough of that—we got a guest here, don't we?"

"Oh, don't mind me," Aerith squeaked, making Cloud look at her oddly. She was suddenly so nervous and shy. "I'll get going now. Sorry if I caused any trouble."

"You got nothing to apologize for. We're all just a little bit too mean to him," Tifa assured. "But he won't stay upset for long, right?" and the raven-haired flashed a sweet smile over to Cloud, who simply rolled his eyes in response.

"Just finished your classes?"

"Yup! Decided to pop on by. Was planning to take a nap here because I'm real tired. Lab lasted the whole four hours today! Geez, I can't believe a class can actually last that long."

"Aw, you haven't been here in a while, Tifa!" Jessie exclaimed as she waved her water bottle in the air. "Let's chill and watch a movie, hm?"

Aerith remained standing there as she listened to their conversations, feeling a bit left out as she managed a small smile on her lips. Cloud seemed to forget about her too as he chatted with his friends, smirk on his face as he listened to Tifa's complaints about how much of a deadweight her lab mate was. Taking it as a signal for her to make her departure, Aerith slipped behind everyone and was about to put on her shoes and go out the door when Cloud grabbed onto her wrist.

"Where are you going?" he asked, attention back on her as he turned around in his chair to face her. "Gotta go home?"

"Ah, I mean… I don't want to intrude," Aerith snuck a glance at the group of friends before she gave him a small smile. "Plus, I think I've been here long enough."

Cloud signaled towards the living room with his head as he let her go. "You're already here. We're about to watch a movie—come join."

"Yes, yes, come join! Let's watch a zombie movie—I'm tired of chic flicks," exclaimed Jessie as she rummaged through their bookcase full of DVDs that Barret had collected over the years. "Barret surprisingly has good tastes."

"Don't you dare scratch any of my discs! Some are limited edition!" roared Barret's voice once more behind his door. At this point, Cloud wondered why he even closeted himself in his room if all he was going to do was listen in on their conversations. "Be gentle with them!"

"Come out and watch if you got the time," Biggs invited as he rummaged through the collection with Jessie. "No one has any work or anything, right?"

At this, Cloud gave Aerith a look. Getting her to stay wasn't part of the plan. She was supposed to leave after he finished patching her up, but after having that close call with Zack, he felt a lot more relaxed—relaxed enough to be in her presence for a while longer despite his earlier objections. However, knowing how busy she could be, Cloud questioned her silently with his eyes if she was going to stay.

"I have time," she said, surprising him as she settled her bag against the sofa. "And I'm a fan of zombie movies."

"You don't have to stay," Cloud gave her one last chance to back out. Clearly, she had no idea what it meant to watch movies with his friends. She didn't know anyone here too well either besides their night at bowling, and he saw the way she got suddenly shy at a group setting. She really must've not gone out a lot like she said.

But even so, deep down, he wanted her to stay.

"What, eager to kick me out?" Aerith laughed. "Had enough of me today?"

"… I'm not kicking you out," he muttered, not wanting to say it too loudly. However, Aerith wasn't done messing with him yet as she cupped a hand around her ear.

"What was that? Sorry, I couldn't hear you."

"… Just stay."

"What?"

"I want you to stay," he said louder, and this time, he got everyone's attention as their sly grins stretched across their faces. Feeling enough torture for today, he shot everyone another glare of death before he excused himself to change back into his home clothes. Throwing on his sweatpants and a regular navy tee, he came out to see everyone already situated in front of the living room with the opening sequence of the movie already rolling.

"What happened to your homework assignment, huh?" Cloud mused to Jessie as he automatically took his place next to Aerith on the floor. The two of them sat at the very end as Aerith situated herself next to Biggs, who fumbled with the remote control to turn off the volume while Tifa switched off all the lights and closed the curtains for the movie effect. Barret even came to join as the door to his room creaked opened quietly, although still intent to do some work with laptop in his hands.

"Moogle is the best search engine on this entire planet," Jessie yawned as she leaned her back against the foot of the sofa. "Tutored me very well, I'll have you know."

"More like helped you cheat," Cloud snorted. "If physiology isn't your thing, you shouldn't have taken it."

"Then I'd be alone," Tifa jokingly sniffed. "Who else would I sit through lecture with? You?"

"Definitely not me—maybe Jessie was the right choice after all."

"Thanks for making me regret my decision even more," Jessie sneered.

Everyone's chatter quieted down as the movie began. Its sounds thundered through the speakers as the rumbles of a train reverberated against the walls of the apartment. Hoping that they didn't get any noise complaints in the middle of the day, Cloud sat back and relaxed. However, he couldn't relax fully when he felt Aerith's curious eyes on him.

"What?" he whispered, wanting to keep their conversation away from other ears this time.

Aerith smiled. "You're different when you're with friends. I didn't expect it."

"Nothing's different," he mumbled. "You're imagining things."

"Imagining how much of a chatterbox you actually are despite how introverted you look?" Aerith let out quiet breaths of laughter as she shook her head. "Cute."

"… Just watch the movie," and Cloud looked away from her, steering his attention on the screen in an attempt to quell the slight flutters that played at his chest once more.

As the movie rolled, he had no idea why Jessie even chose to watch a thriller when she kept hiding behind Biggs every time a jump scare threatened to pop out or when gore started to splash behind the screen. Even Tifa had to wince a bit as she watched the flesh-eating zombies tore at the humans. As for Barret, he was too busy typing away on his laptop to care; plus, he had seen these movies over and over again, and none of it scared him anymore.

Cloud was surprised to see Aerith keep her cool as she kept her eyes trained on the TV, green orbs wide with excitement as she watched the movie. While everyone else seemed slightly perturbed from the movie, she was the only one who didn't flinch from the disgusting monsters. She didn't look like the type to enjoy these kinds of things either, but he told himself to stop assuming things about her—she was just too unpredictable.

Glad that she was able to enjoy their spontaneous decision to watch a movie, Cloud finally relaxed as he leaned back and placed his hands behind him on the floor. The last thing he expected was to touch her fingertips, causing him to jolt a little bit as static ran up his arm from the contact. Immediately, he retracted his hand back to his side. Aerith didn't show any reaction as she continued to watch the movie.

However, when he glanced down to look at her hand, he saw the way she crept her fingertips closer towards him from behind. Because of the way they orientated themselves on the floor, none of his friends could see what was going on as the sofa blocked most of their view. Aerith still didn't look at him as her eyes trained themselves on the TV, but a small smile played at her lips—a sign that she was no longer paying attention to the movie. Her hand stopped in the middle of them, showing no indication of advancing forward.

Cloud let out a slow, deep breath as he returned his gaze to the movie right when a zombie got beheaded with a gardening hoe. However, even with the violence presented, none of it fazed him because all he thought about was how warm he felt when he placed his palm atop her hand, meeting it in the middle behind their shoulders.

And for the rest of the movie, they kept their hands like that, minds distracted as all they thought about was each other.

~.~.~

"Are you sure you don't need a ride home?"

"Positive! I won't make you travel an hour by car, silly."

Aerith did one twirl with her dress when they reached the bus stop. Since it was an odd hour in the late afternoon, it was just the two of them: a nice break from the monstrous line that usually rounded the block during the rush hours. Cloud decided to keep her company until the bus came.

"You're odd," he decided to blurt out once her eyes were off her phone. "I'm still feeling something after watching that movie, but you're just dandy."

Aerith quirked an eyebrow up before she grinned. "Oh, you were still watching?"

"…"

Cloud looked away from her as he pulled at the collar of his shirt, wondering if she enjoyed teasing him like this. One moment she would be all shy, and the next she would suddenly throw a lasso at him and tie him up tight for a wild ride with her sudden moves.

"Sorry about earlier," Cloud switched the topic over to his earlier behavior. When Aerith gave him another curious look, he cleared his throat and said, "For just pushing you underneath the blankets."

" _Pfft,_ I already forgot about that," Aerith laughed as she waved a hand in her air. "Plus, I can't hold a grudge over my savior, right?" She lifted a foot off the ground and shook it before she gave the gray cement a good stomp. "Thanks for bandaging me up. Never thought I would get steamrolled by a skateboarder, but there you go."

"It's not hard to dodge," he offered, still not understanding how she couldn't hear the skateboard wheels coming right at her, let alone see them. "I'm surprised you still, uh, toppled over."

"It was because someone got me a little sad, but it's okay."

Cloud took a step back when Aerith poked a coy finger at his chest, Cheshire grin back at full force. "Because I got a date now."

"When did I ever— _oh._ " Amidst his panic with Zack, he didn't realize what he had agreed to give her until Aerith brought it back up. He pulled her hand down weakly, wondering if there was any way he could take it back, but the barista was quick to read his mind as a large frown creased between her eyes.

"No taksies-backsies!" she pouted, uttering a word he hadn't heard since kindergarten. Then, he could see the puppy ears atop her head droop as her spirits instantly died down. "Well, I mean, if you don't want to, then it's fine, but—"

"I didn't say that," Cloud quickly interjected. Misunderstandings seemed to be a common thing between them, and he was sure that ninety-nine percent of them was because of him. _That's what you get for being so fickle._ "Look, I got… _stuff_ to sort out. After that, I'll call you—then we can hang out. Hm?"

"Seems like someone's real busy," Aerith scoffed, but she nonetheless smiled as she gave him an understanding nod. "I'll be waiting!"

Sighing in relief that she didn't push on further, Cloud prepared to say goodbye when he heard the bus rolling by the corner of the block. However, he should've known that she wouldn't let him off easy just like that. When the bus turned and entered their view down the street, he raised his hand up for a wave goodbye. Instead of receiving one back, he would've been kissed square on the lips if not for his lightning-fast arms that held her back by the shoulders the moment her face suddenly got too close for comfort.

"Darn, you're starting to read me now," Aerith snapped her fingers at her failed attempt, giggling wildly as a dark and bewildered flush stained his skin. "Think I'd leave without taking something?"

"You've obviously never been in a relationship before," he dared to splutter as he kept her at arm's reach, breath running thin as if he just went out for a jog. "Because you're taking all the steps out of order here."

"It's okay, baby steps don't need to be taken!"

Aerith wasn't serious when she jokingly leaned in again, but Cloud had his defenses up as he pulled her for a hug instead to dodge her—as if that would make the situation better. Surprised, Aerith hiccupped as she blinked past his shoulder, watching as the bus decelerated at their stop.

"Done?" he let out, completely unaware that the bus had already arrived as the door steamed open for them. He felt Aerith nod slowly.

"I'm done."

"Ahem."

Cloud instantly let her go when the gruff, impatient voice of the bus driver snapped him out of it. Awkwardly taking stumbling steps back, he gave Aerith some space as she re-shouldered her bag strap, cheeks a similar state to his as she held a meek hand up in goodbye.

"Thanks for today. And message me!" Aerith said before she clambered onto the steps and into the bus.

The embarrassment only hit once the bus disappeared from his sight. Groaning into his hands, Cloud mindlessly walked back into his apartment, not at all happy that he was starting to get swept up with her antics—not that he hadn't already. He was beginning to do things unlike him; it was a matter of time until he did something impulsively stupid.

Like kiss her back or something.

_No, Cloud Strife,_ _**no.** _

"Steps exist to be taken in order," he muttered to himself once he reached the elevator. He patted his cheeks, urging them to get rid of their heat before he made it back into his apartment. Even a shade of pink would get his apartment mates plus Tifa to get them up at their seats, and it didn't help with the extra energy they obtained from watching a thriller.

Nodding at his words of self-wisdom, he was going to, indeed, take the next step—the step that he had been avoiding since day one. Making a note to spare some time later next week to hit up Zack, Cloud allowed himself to get a much-needed breather from his always-energy-consuming interactions with the odd barista.

It would've been nice if it had lasted longer though. Too bad it was Zack—not him—who called two days later. Then, the hammer struck down.

"I'm going to confess to Aerith," Zack suddenly announced. "And I need your help, buddy."


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, update! This chapter was supposed to be longer because I was going to include a loooot of stuff, but then I realized that it'd be a big, big, BIG boy, so I decided to just split it up. Ofc, I got the other half to write, and it's pretty juicy (I WOULD BELIEVE LOL) SO STAY TUNED FOR THAT! I'm off of school for around two weeks, so hopefully i get a lot of content pushed out by then! Ty for continuing to read this far, and enjoy!

_I'm going to confess to Aerith. And I need your help, buddy._

Cloud stared at his French fry as he absentmindedly swirled it in his cup of ketchup. Currently, he was out with the gang for some burgers, but his mind was barely there with them as Barret and Tifa chatted animatedly about the career fair that had been going on recently on campus. Jessie and Biggs listened as Barret gave everyone some tips on making a resume that stood out, and while Cloud would've benefited greatly from his advice as a PhD student (even if the big guy was questionable sometimes), every word unfortunately went out the other ear.

It was when Biggs waved a hand across his face that he snapped out of it and returned his attention back on his friends.

"Dude, you alright?" Biggs asked, concern lacing his voice slightly. "You've been out of it. I don't think I've ever seen you space out before."

"It's nothing," mumbled Cloud. He finally ate his ketchup-soaked fry before he let out a lengthy sigh. This issue was getting to him more than he liked, and it didn't help with the way his stubbornness was stopping him from confiding to any of his friends. Stuck in a complicated position, Cloud could feel his head spin as he felt himself get tugged left and right, unable to make a decision on how to go about this.

Zack was one of his best friends—how could he say no? And Cloud had been in this wingman shenanigan since day one. Dropping out when Zack was about to go all-in was not part of the bro code—not that there were any rules left for Cloud to break. He had yet to go meet up with Zack in person to discuss about what help he needed, but it gnawed at Cloud every second the longer he sat here deciding whether or not to play along or finally just spill the beans.

 _Ugh._ Cloud stuffed the last french fry in his mouth before he pushed his trash towards the center of the table. Deciding to just think about it later, he tuned his ears back on his friends' conversation, but his focus didn't stay for long.

When his phone vibrated in his pocket, his heart rate instantly picked up the pace. There was only one person who would text him when all of his friends were already here.

Casually as Barret continued to share the recipe of what made a good resume, Cloud slipped his phone out of his pocket to read the messages from the one and only.

_Heyo~! What'cha doing? I'm dying in lab waiting for my gel to finish and I'm really bored!_

Cloud sucked his lips in to stop a smile from showing before he put his phone back into his pocket. If he answered now, there was no way his nosy friends would ever leave him alone since Cloud Strife was rarely on his phone for anything.

Then, he sighed.

Even if he found himself getting all giddy over something as small as a text, the guilt never felt so alive before as his mind automatically zoned back onto Zack. He was silly to think that things wouldn't get as complicated as it did the day he first approached her because of the stalker—what did he even expect?

No, he didn't expect anything. He shouldn't have expected anything. After all, how could he have known that Aerith would suddenly… like him?

And how could he have known that he too would…

Liking someone was a lot simpler than he thought. She was cute, and she was nice, albeit a little bit quirky. He didn't need any big reasons to like anyone.

However, why did it have to be the girl his best friend finally got serious with? Cute and nice—a lot of girls were like that, so why?

"After all, you can't help but fall in love!"

Cloud banged his knee against the table harshly out of surprise. This brought everyone's attention back onto him, this time with weirded out looks rather than of concern.

"Um, are you alright, Cloud?" It was Tifa's turn to ask as she quirked an eyebrow up at him.

Cloud took a breath in as he quelled the pain he felt at his kneecap before he smiled weakly. "Dandy. And, uh, what are you guys talking about?"

"There's another modern-day _Romeo and Juliet_ adaption coming out soon. I heard this is going to be great though because we got some real hot actors this time around. I think Squall Leonhart and Rinoa Heartilly are the main actors!" Jessie explained excitedly. "Ooo, I can't wait! Star-crossed lovers, isn't that so romantic?"

Confirming that his friends were indeed not talking about him, Cloud nodded slowly before he slunk back into his seat. Belittling himself for overreacting to something so small, he inwardly groaned. All of this was just giving him a headache.

_Let's see what Zack has to say._

After lunch with his apartment mates, Cloud bid everyone goodbye. He had agreed to meet with Zack at some café (an actual café, and not a flower shop fusion), but the last thing he expected was for Tifa to just tag along to his car when everyone else was going into Biggs's. Silently, he questioned her with an odd look, one that she returned with a smile. When she made herself at home and slunk into the passenger seat, he sighed before he followed her and entered with a loud shut to his car door.

"So you're not even going to explain, huh?" deadpanned Cloud. He started his engine before pumping up the AC, but he was quick to shoot Tifa a look as he leaned an elbow on the armrest between them. "Unless you want me to kidnap you, spill."

"Just hit the gas. I'm meeting up with Zack too," Tifa said knowingly as she buckled her seatbelt. "And before you even ask, you'll know when we get there, so go!"

"You're getting too comfortable," Cloud growled. Nonetheless, he heeded her words, but as he punched in the address of the place, he felt some nervousness bubbling at the pit of his stomach. Why was Tifa coming along? _Zack, what in the world are you up to with this confession of yours?_

When they arrived, they could see Zack just sitting at a table waiting for them through the window. A drink was already in his hand. Hoping that it wasn't anything coffee so that the poor guy didn't have to stand up and go to the bathroom every five minutes, Cloud opened the door for Tifa. With the bell up top signaling their arrival, Zack's head shot up from his phone before he waved them over.

"Right on time!"

"Punctuality is an essential." Jerking a thumb over to the front, Cloud looked over at Tifa. "Want anything?"

"Hm, iced chrysanthemum tea sounds great," grinned Tifa. "Thanks."

"Hn." The blond stuffed his hands into his pockets before he went over to the line. Away from his friends, he went ahead and took out his phone to respond to Aerith's message.

_With friends. Lab work sounds boring. How many hours do you have left?_

He kept his phone out because he knew she was a fast responder. Lo and behold, in less than ten seconds, a response popped up.

_Technically two, but if this gel doesn't work out right, it's another hour. Lab work doesn't have standard hours!_

Then, her next message made his nervousness come back.

_So is a date coming around any time soon in your schedule?_

Cloud wished she could've used a different word. "Hangout" would've been better, along with "free time," but no, she knew where to tickle his spots.

 _… We'll see_ , was his outrageously plain response, and before he could see her message back, he turned on "Do Not Disturb" and stuffed his phone back into his pocket. Today, he was going to talk to Zack, and if all worked out, then he could finally tell him the truth.

If it all worked out.

"Here." Cloud gave Tifa her iced drink before taking the seat next to her and across Zack. Rubbing his hands together, Zack looked excited as he eyed the both of them.

"So you may wonder why I brought Tifa along," he started off. "But wonder no more! The plan will soon be explained to you."

"… There's a plan?" Cloud didn't like the sound of that. Looking over at Tifa, she simply giggled as she signaled for Zack to continue on. When Zack rolled up his sleeves, Cloud had a hard time taking the guy seriously.

"Enough's enough—I think it's time guys," Zack announced. "This flirting business needs to stop. It's time to confess."

"Woo!" Tifa cheered to hype Zack up. "Let's go!"

"Any reason why you're suddenly confessing?" Cloud asked. He made sure to sound as normal as possible as he drank his iced black tea—his favorite. "Did she… signal something?"

"N'aw, dude, it's just," Zack rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "I just really like her. So I think it's about time she knew about my feelings anyway. You know me, I don't play this pre-dating stuff for too long."

 _Pre-dating?_ Cloud felt his internal eye muscle twitch involuntarily. He shouldn't have felt any sort of irritation, but the way Zack phrased it made it sound like he was definitely going to get the girl. Feeling a bit silly once more from getting a little hot-headed over this, Cloud mentally shook himself out of it as he nodded slowly and let Zack's words sink.

"… How do you want me to help out?"

Hoping that it wouldn't be anything too big so that he could have some room to actually tell Zack the truth, Cloud awaited his answer. When the big smile showed on the raven-haired's face, he knew he was going to regret asking.

"So Tifa here told me you're quite on talking terms with Aerith ever since bowling, eh?" Zack said, nearly making Cloud hit his funny bone against the table for the second time that day. Immediately, Cloud gave Tifa the side-eye. "Saw you guys becoming friends too. I love it when everyone gets along!"

"Haha, I wonder what kind of stuff Tifa's been telling you," Cloud said lowly, not enjoying the look Tifa was giving him. "We got acquainted, sure. We… don't talk that much though."

"Okay, that's good enough that you guys can talk because I need you for something."

"What is it? And will someone tell me why Tifa's here listening?"

"Double date."

Cloud actually entered a terrible choking fit as some liquid slipped down his throat the wrong way. Grabbing the napkin on the table, he covered his mouth as Zack and Tifa watched him with worry.

"Double _what?_ " Cloud croaked after he found his voice again. Finally putting the pieces together to explain why Tifa was here, he pinched his eyebrows and shook his head. "You're joking."

"Look, I know—the most cliché of them all in the book. But!" Zack wagged his finger side-to-side, "It'll just be one in disguise. A group hangout with friends—that's how she'll be invited. If we tell her it's a double date, I'm sure she'll catch on before I confess."

 _She's already caught on_ , Cloud mentally sighed as he crossed his arms. "Why are you making your confession so complicated? Do you really have to drag me and Tifa into this?"

"It has to be natural, dude! Yo, me and Aerith have never hung out alone before. Like I said, I don't want her to know until I actually tell her! So," Zack rubbed his hands together in anticipation, "When all is good, you and Tifa go shoo-shoo, and I'll just slip right in. Doesn't that sound smooth?"

"Sounds troublesome," growled Cloud.

"C'mon," Tifa elbowed Cloud on the side, "This is the big show for Zack. Unless…?"

"Unless nothing." Cloud quickly inserted that in so that Tifa didn't raise up any suspicions right in front of Zack. Knowing fully well how she was holding the reigns over the situation, Tifa smirked at him before her eyes went back to Zack.

"I know you're tired of this wingman business, but for real, this'll be the last time! It's the homerun after all!" pleaded Zack as he gave Cloud his infamous puppy eyes. "You've been a real homie since day one—just one last time."

"Like hell this is the last time."

"Last time in any of my love business!"

"And you," Cloud narrowed his eyes at Tifa, "You're really having fun with this, aren't you?"

"What are you talking about? If Zack's asking for help, of course I would help him out!"

"You're _really_ annoying."

"And I adore you too," Tifa teasingly ruffled his hair, earning an irritated grunt from him before he pulled away and sighed.

"Alright, _fine_." It couldn't be too bad, right? It'll just be a hangout. And if it worked according to plan, Aerith would…

Reject Zack.

_Ouch._

Even though Aerith's feelings were to her own, Cloud felt once more extremely guilty towards Zack for having these sorts of thoughts. Feeling like he was committing some sort of crime for withholding very important information from Zack, he began to get all jittery again. Maybe he should tell the truth—right here and right now.

"Look, Zack—"

"Cloud, you're really a true buddy," Zack interrupted him with a shine in his eyes. Cloud found it hard to look away. "Like honestly. I never really showed you my appreciation outwardly like this before, but you just really gotta know right now. I don't think I'll ever meet someone like you ever again."

"Haha, that's not true," Cloud laughed nervously, finding his determination to tell the truth just wither away into nothingness. "But Zack—"

"I'll always remember this, okay? So thanks."

"…"

"Really."

"… No problem."

_So much for the truth._

Finding the hole too deep to climb out of now, Cloud remained quiet and accepted his fate. Now, he was definitely sure that there was someone out there just pulling the strings to make sure the odds were stacked against his favor. Wondering how this "double date" would turn out, he tried not to think about it too much, or else his head would spin out of the dimension.

"Just tell me when this hangout is, and I'll leave my schedule free."

"Oh, I won't be needing to tell you when it is," Zack said knowingly.

Cloud raised an eyebrow. "… Excuse me?"

"What did I say about making sure she doesn't suspect anything? I only devised this plan because of one thing."

"…"

"You're on talking terms with Aerith, aren't you? You invite her."

Oh, _hell_ no.

"You've got a screw loose, Zack, the fuck?" Cloud rarely cussed like this, but his astonishment was too great to be contained. "Why me?"

"What did I say about blowing my cover? I gotta make sure she doesn't suspect anything from me! So if you're the one who invites her for just a 'casual hangout,' I'm sure she won't catch on to anything! Brilliant plan, don't you think?" Zack never looked so smug before as he rubbed a finger underneath his nose, all the while ignoring the incredulous look Cloud had plastered on his face. "If it comes from you, she won't think a thing! You're awesome too, Tifa. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have thought of this plan!"

"You are welcome, sir," Tifa grinned, giving him a thumbs up as she ignored the look of death Cloud gave her. "Anything for the pursuit of love!"

"You guys are really ignoring what I have to say about this." Exasperated, Cloud rubbed his face with both his hands, as if doing so would just wipe away everything he just heard for the past ten minutes. "Look, me and… _Aerith_ don't talk that much. I'm not excited to be looking like a creep here." Even saying her name in front of Zack made him feel guilty.

"Based on what I saw in bowling, I'm pretty sure you're anything but a creep," Zack interjected. "Y'all were friendly—friendly enough to hang out! So I'm sure if you just hit her up, she'd think nothing of it. Plus, you're going to mention Tifa too! And everyone knows how you guys are going out. She won't mistake it as anything. Trust."

"I am not going to further propagate this long-forsaken mistruth between me and red-eyes here," Cloud stated eloquently. He didn't even try to hide his distaste of being paired up with Tifa once more.

"Red-eyes? You're kidding. You're making me sound like some sort of fruit fly!" Tifa gasped, hand over her mouth in mock offense. "These are beautiful wine-colored eyes, you jerk."

"Look, I'm really starting to feel that I'm not the person for this," Cloud said uncomfortably. "Plus, I, uh, don't even have her number or anything."

"Say no more."

In less than a second, Zack already had his phone out in front of Cloud with Aerith's number across it. "Right here, my dude, right here."

Racking his brain for anymore excuses, Cloud was impressed he was able to spot all the loopholes in this flawed plan despite how pressured he felt. "Dude, then she's going to ask how I got her number."

"Her number was in the group chat for bowling. Nice try," Zack then sighed. "But you know, in all honesty, if it really bothers you, then—"

"No, no bother," Cloud quickly interrupted, and he wondered why he even did. Keeping his eye from twitching, he let out another forced round of chuckles as he felt a little bit of sweat mat the back of his neck. "No bother at all. I'll… do it."

Zack widened his eyes before his mouth stretched to form a very big grin. "Really, buddy? Man, I knew you were the best!"

_What did I just get myself into?_

When that concluded the discussion of Zack's confession plan, Cloud could feel his insides just churning by the second. To think that he could just exit out the door without making anything any more complicated—oh, what a fool he was. Questioning how on earth he could get Aerith to play along with this when she was well aware of how Zack felt about her, Cloud rattled his brain to get something out of it. Tifa didn't help at all with the way she just watched him mentally explode in his car.

"You," Cloud's eyes couldn't get anymore dangerous, "I should've terminated our friendship the moment high school hit. Ever since then, you've been dragging me into very unnecessary situations."

"Oh, whatever do you mean?" Tifa exaggeratedly flipped some hair over her shoulder, hitting some of it against Cloud's face in the process. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"How much did you tell Zack? I didn't think that I had to tell you what to keep secret."

"I told him nothing. I'm not _that_ low," Tifa assured. Returning back to her normal, non-nosy self, she sighed as reached a hand down at the side of her seat. Reclining her seat back, she closed her eyes and placed a hand over them to shield them from the beating sun from outside. "He just asked for my help, and along the way, he asked if you and Aerith were on friendly terms. Naturally, I said yes, but I saved your ass and mentioned that all of it was during bowling, so you're good."

Cloud wished he hadn't asked. Now, he had more questions that Tifa probably didn't have the answers to this time—was Zack starting to suspect something?

"Ugh," Cloud banged his head against his steering wheel hard as he contemplated his decision to help Zack with this. Technically, he shouldn't feel guilty about the plan itself. He had made sure that none of his personal feelings interfered, so if he really thought about it, Zack would've planned this out regardless of his newfound relationship with Aerith. Zack would confess, and Aerith would reject.

_Simple, right?_

But human thinking was flawed, and Cloud still couldn't rid himself of the guilt. He knew something Zack didn't, and that itself was already a misconduct to the bro code. If anyone were to ever find out what was going on, they'd probably call him a scumbag for taking his best friend's girl—not that she was ever his to begin with.

_Calling dibs on somebody should be illegal._

"Sometimes, I don't understand you, silly," Tifa said, snapping him out of his mini-breakdown. "If this was going to bother you this much, you should've just told Zack the truth. I mean, you should've told him way earlier before, but when we were with him just now, it was the perfect opportunity. Zack's not an asshole, you know—he wouldn't just flip the table on you or anything if he were to know."

"If your simple logic was practical, world peace would've been achieved ages ago," Cloud retorted. However, he knew Tifa was right. "Plus, whatever's done is done. We'll go through with this, and Zack will hopefully move on."

"Not thinking much about Aerith's feelings about this one, huh?"

"What?"

Tifa buckled her seatbelt before turning onto her side for a nap. Yawning, she didn't say anything else except, "Take me to your place. My roommate's boyfriend is going to be over tonight, so hope you don't mind me sleeping over."

"You're taking the sofa this time. I got a small quiz to sleep for tomorrow."

"Gotcha."

And so, as Cloud drove them back to his apartment, all he thought about was how the day would go, and not how a certain someone would feel about it.

~.~.~

"Pancakes for dinner. What a classic. You know what, I'll get cereal for dinner too." Biggs extended a hand to reach past Jessie for the cereal box that stood in the corner of the counter. "We got any orange juice to pair this off with?"

"Only making pancakes because I forgot to go to the grocery store, and the pancake mix was just oh-so conveniently in stock in our pantry," Jessie sighed. "Think adding some bacon onto this would make it a five-star meal?"

"Eggs also make anything five-star," Biggs chuckled. Opening the fridge with his foot, he took out some milk before he poured it into his bowl.

"You're disgusting."

Cloud emerged from his room with Tifa behind him as they finished up making their allowed cheat sheet for their upcoming midterm next week. He came out just in time to witness Biggs pouring the milk before the cereal. "An actual crime to humanity."

"What can I say, old habits die hard."

"The real question is where he learned this habit from. Your people are an abomination," Jessie shuddered. Flipping her pancake, she nearly hit Cloud from behind as the pancake sizzled and hissed.

"Watch it," he growled, backing away from Jessie's terrible flipping skills. "C'mon, use a spatula or something. No one's a chef here, including you." Not liking how the kitchen space was so small, Cloud rummaged through the fridge for his one-day old spaghetti before popping it into the microwave for two minutes. Leaning his back against the counter, he sighed as he watched Jessie flip her pancake again, only to reveal charred carcinogens. "If you can't cook pancakes, then I'm afraid for your future."

"Ugh, it's 'cause you're all distracting me! Biggs, pour your goddamn cereal somewhere else!"

"This is why I love your place," Tifa chuckled besides Cloud. "It's always an energetic fiasco here, it's great."

"Try living here, and you'll change your mind."

When Cloud finished his dinner, he excused himself from the living room. When asked why he wasn't keeping them company, his hard glare was directed at Tifa once more, who received it with a nervous whistle. "I got a phone call to make because someone over here likes to get me in odd situations."

"Take your time," Tifa grinned.

Shutting the door behind him, Cloud let out a small, drawn-out groan as he collapsed onto his bed. He lazily reached over to his chair where his sweatpants hung and changed into them before he tossed his jeans into his laundry basket from across the room. Prepping himself up for the very nerve-wracking call, Cloud opened up his contacts list and stared at her name.

How was he going to begin this? Surely, he couldn't mess this up.

_Are you free to hang out with some of my friends?_

"That sounds okay, right?" he muttered to himself. Laying onto his side, he took a deep breath in before he pressed the call button. Expecting a few rings, he did not expect her to answer within the first.

"Hi!" came her cheerful voice. "What's up? A call from you is unexpected."

"Hey," he greeted back, suddenly feeling stupid with the way a knot was already forming at his throat. "Er, it's faster. Than texting."

"True."

He could hear the rumbles of the bus in the background from where she was. Peeking at his watch, he grimaced as he saw the time. "You're just heading home now?"

"Got the closing shift tonight, so had to clean up the shop and everything before I left," she hummed. "Hold on, I gotta show the driver my bus pass real quick."

"Sure."

He could hear her fumble with the phone in her grasp as she got out her bus pass. When she found a seat, she placed the phone back against her ear. "How was your hangout with your friends?"

"Hangout? Ah, it was whatever," he answered lamely. "Same old, same old."

"Still sounds fun. Do you get good grades, by the way?"

"Suddenly interested in my transcript?" scoffed Cloud. Not surprised at her ability to sound natural, he felt himself relaxing through the awkwardness of a phone call. "Why are you asking?"

"Just wondering. You seem very lax and chill about school. I don't think I've ever seen you do work."

"So you automatically assume I don't get good grades?"

"Didn't say that. Ah! I remember!"

"Remember what?"

"The library! How could I forget. You were so intense with your laptop!"

Cloud pinched his eyebrows together as he tried to remember how he looked that day. _Probably not good_. Many shots of expresso later, and he was bound to look like the undead. "How many times are you going to bring that up?"

"A lot because you're cute."

"…"

"Don't go silent on me. You get me all embarrassed."

"Then don't embarrass yourself," he said softly. "More than embarrassed, I think you should worry more about how straightforward you are."

"… If I was never straightforward, would we be talking like this?"

Cloud blinked at his white ceiling, a bit stunned from what she said. It was a scenario he had never considered nor even thought of. What _would've_ happened if he didn't walk into Coffee & Flowers with Zack? If she didn't drunk call him? If she didn't _kiss_ him?

He'd probably cheer Zack on from the bottom of his heart.

_Zack._

"I called to ask you something," Cloud said, completely avoiding her question. "Are you… free anytime this coming Saturday?"

"I mean, I have my shift, but it's the morning, so I should be good after two! Why, what's up?"

Before he could mention Zack's and Tifa's name, her squeal suddenly shot through the line, loud and clear into his ear. "Is this an invite to a date?"

"Uh, I mean—"

"Ooo, I've been waiting all week! Took you long enough!"

Cloud felt an odd sense of demise swirling inside of him as he sat up straight and tried to make it clear that it was _not_ a date between them and that it was just a group hangout, but Aerith was a bit too excited to heed his clumsy stumble with words.

"You know, I was wondering whether or not I had to do the first move again, but you caught me by surprise this time!"

"Wait, Aerith, it's not—"

_Ding, ding!_

"Oh shoot, my stop's here! I'm about to go buy some ingredients for dinner tonight, you see. It'll be a while until I'll get home, but when I do, let's plan out the details together!"

Cloud meekly laughed, wondering how it all got so wrong so quick. "Sure."

"Talk to you later!"

"… Bye."

The call ended.

And so did his spirits.

"Oh no, no, no," Cloud stuffed his face into his pillow, letting whatever just happened sink in deep within his blood and core. To think he wouldn't fuck up anymore than this—oh, what a fool he was indeed. "No, no, no…"

As if to make things worse, Zack texted him, further accentuating the mess Cloud just created.

_Dude, I'm like waiting in anticipation here! Did you get a day yet? Gotta make sure I look tip-top before then!_

Staring at his phone with lifeless eyes, Cloud automatically moved his fingers against the touch screen before tossing it away somewhere on his bed.

_Saturday. Around two._

Was it too late to correct her? Remembering how happy she sounded though, he bit the inside of his cheek as he pondered on what to do. It felt a little bit too late to take it back too.

So should he just tell her the day of?

"Cloud Strife, you're many things, but an asshole is not one of them, contrary to popular belief," he murmured to himself, voice slightly tinged with anxiety as he ran a shaky hand through his hair. "But you are an idiot. A _huge_ idiot."

It didn't take long for Aerith to finish grocery shopping. When Cloud was in the middle of cooling himself down with a drink of water, her text came before he was prepared for it.

_Pick me up at around two-thirty? In front of my workplace :)_

It wouldn't be too bad, right? To just tell her the day of. It'd be really lame, but it'd just end with good laughs, if anything.

"…"

Responding to her text with a simple "okay," Cloud continued to be in denial as he started to pace the room.

Yes—it wouldn't be too bad. Aerith's pretty understanding. _Yup._

"Zack texted me—Saturday?" hollered Tifa from the living room.

"Yeah."

"Sounds good."

Oh, how wrong he was—to think it'd go smoothly.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So it's been a while since the update, so here it is! If you follow my twitter, then you guys would know that I haven't been writing because alksjdfowialejfoawef just school again HAHA. Gonna graduate soon, but until then, will not be writing as often as I would like! But I managed to sneak some free time to pump out this chapter, so here you guys go! Enjoy!

By the time Cloud arrived in his car in front of Aerith's workplace to pick her up, he received a very unexpected text from Zack.

_I'm so sorry, but something happened with Kunsel. The guy got super hungover last night and he can barely move. I gotta be a buddy and help him out since he's literally bedridden, so I have to flake on this one! Really sorry, and tell Aerith I'm sorry too! I already told Tifa as well._

"You're kidding," Cloud muttered to himself, astonished at how late this notice was. A part of him felt relief, but the other felt a bit off as he read Zack's text message for the second time. "What is going on?"

Cloud didn't hesitate to call his number, but he was directed straight to voicemail. Stunned, Cloud pulled the phone away from his ear to stare at it in shock—something smelled oddly fishy about this. Wanting a little bit more context, he called Tifa. Thankfully, she picked up.

"What's up?" she greeted.

"What do you mean 'what's up'? Is Zack for real?" Cloud was quick to get to the point as he tapped a finger against his steering wheel. "He was getting really fussy all week for this day, and ten minutes before the meet-up, he just dips?"

"I heard Kunsel over the phone when Zack called me," Tifa sighed. "Sounds like a dead man for the day. And I was already out the door too when he called, so you're not the only one."

"So where are you now?"

" _Pfft_ , I'm at home chilling—of course I went back inside my apartment. There's no point if Zack doesn't come, so I think it's safe to say that the plan is postponed."

"But I'm already here with Aeri—"

_Knock, knock!_

Cloud turned his head to face the window of the passenger seat, only to meet the cheerful face of Aerith as she signaled for him to unlock his car. She waited patiently when she realized how he was on the phone.

"Well then, this works out, doesn't it?"

He could literally feel the eye roll from Tifa from the other line.

"Do tell how this works out," Cloud muttered.

"Well—"

"It was a rhetorical question. Good bye," and he ended the call and unlocked the doors for Aerith.

"Sorry, did you wait long?" she greeted as she situated herself in the passenger seat. "Work lasted a tiny bit longer, but hopefully not too long!"

"I didn't wait long," Cloud sighed as he clamped his phone against the holder. Some sort of expression must've showed on his face, for Aerith gave him a concerned glance as she saw his stiff figure.

"Something the matter?" she asked.

"What? Oh, it's nothing," he quickly dismissed. Now that it was just them two, it was now just a regular hangout, right? With Zack flaking, Cloud could confidently swear that he would never get involved in this type of situation ever again. He already felt like a shitty friend (and person in general) with this whole fiasco, and any more would cause him to rot until nothing was left in his moral conscience.

"So what do you want to do today? Any plans?"

"And here I thought you had the day planned," she giggled as she rolled her eyes. "But no worries. I heard spontaneous plans are the trend now."

"Along with the trend to waste time, sure." Nonetheless, he unclasped his phone and began to scroll through potential places to eat. Considering her hours, Cloud guessed she hadn't had lunch yet, and neither did he. Biggs and his late-night gaming always got to him. So, having only been awake for an hour—enough time to get ready and everything—he was hungry enough for a meal. "What do you like to eat?"

"Ooo, are we going somewhere to eat? It's been forever," yipped Aerith as she clapped her hands together in excitement. "I'm not really a picky eater, so anything is good as long as it's not, uh…"

"No worries," he assured, catching the hint about her finances. "I don't eat bougie things anyway. Do you want to choose where to eat?"

"Ah, but I don't really know a lot of places. It seems like you do though."

"Eh, not really. I insist—up to you."

"No, it's really okay. Like I said, I'm down for anything!"

"I'm okay with anything too, so no worries and just choose."

"…"

"…"

Cloud got thrown off guard when Aerith suddenly burst into laughing. He gave her an odd look, one with which she returned with mirth.

"Is this the indecisiveness I've heard so much about when choosing a place?" she laughed. "Didn't think it'd be this bad once I experienced it for myself. Okay, okay, I'll choose, just for the sake of our stomachs."

"I pass the power onto you," Cloud said jokingly as he handed her his phone. Wondering what kind of place she had in mind, he watched as she typed rapidly on his phone before putting it back onto the holder.

"I want to eat tacos," she announced. "And not just any tacos!"

"Oh, I've been here before," Cloud said as he began his drive over to the place. "With my apartment mates last year. It's the self-serve tacos, right?"

"Yup! I haven't had it in forever. The last time was when my mom helped me move to college in freshman year. After a long day of hauling things back and forth, this place really hit the spot. Too bad I never had the chance to ever go again, but…"

Cloud nearly lost his grip on his steering wheel when he felt Aerith reach over and wrap her arm around his that rested on the armrest between them. She snuggled her forehead against it before she broke into happy laughter. "Things are different now!"

"I'm driving," he muttered as he pulled away from her, but he couldn't fight down the slight red that threatened to crawl from his neck upwards. Thankfully, he decided to wear a collared shirt today, so Aerith didn't notice as she gave him a joking pout before settling fully into her seat.

When they arrived, Cloud could see Aerith's excitement as she sighed happily at the thought of food in her stomach. Feeling a bit awkward since this was their first time ever together voluntarily, he tried not to appear all fidgety as they entered the restaurant. Since it was late afternoon, it wasn't as bustling as prime lunchtime, but there was still a decent amount of people lined at the self-serve bar.

"Ooo, yay, there's a table over there," Aerith pointed out. Leading the way, she got them a seat that wasn't too far from the bar.

"Go knock yourself out first. I'll watch over the table," said Cloud. "You can keep out of trouble, right?"

"I must've set some sort of bad impression. I'm not that bad," Aerith stuck her tongue out, but she didn't put up a long-lasting fight before she skipped over to the bar and hugged a plate happily to her chest as she waited in line.

"How did things end up like this?" Cloud muttered to himself as he took out his phone. He tried to find a distraction in texting Tifa, but the response he got wasn't too encouraging.

_You're lame—hiding behind your phone._

"Okay, screw you," he scoffed before he stuffed the electronic back into his pocket. To think that his friends could ever give him comforting support—how naïve.

"I'm done!" Aerith chirped as she placed her plate down onto the table. Instantly, Cloud raised an eyebrow and quickly counted the number of tacos on her plate.

"Really? _Five?_ Guess we'll be out of here real soon."

"This is just the beginning, good sir," Aerith winked. "You seem to underestimate me with many things."

"… What am I about to see?"

He shouldn't have questioned nor wondered because the moment he returned back to the table with his plate, he witnessed something greater than Jessie eating a whole turkey by herself on Moogle's Day.

"This is real good, ugh," Aerith said as she stuffed herself with her third taco. With her clean hand, she pulled some of her front hair back behind her ear before she took another bite, and Cloud watched as some of the filling dropped back onto the plate. However, it was quick to disappear as she scooped it and plopped it back in her mouth. Jaw falling open, Cloud didn't even pick up his first taco yet—he was too awestruck.

It wasn't until she finished her third taco that she realized Cloud was back with a full, untouched dish. She blinked at him, looked at her hands, and looked back at him before she sucked her lips in.

"So the fork and knife didn't come by yet."

Bursting out laughing, Cloud gave her the most bizarre yet amused look. "A fork and knife—really?" Wiping a tear that threatened to fall, he rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Don't even bother. I don't think table manners are necessary for this kind of food."

"Sorry, I was hungry," she said sheepishly as she wiped her mouth. "Not too thrown off, are you?"

"Remind me not to get you hungry."

"Meanie."

"I'm just kidding. Kind of refreshing, I guess. Continue with the stuffing—I don't mind."

"Now you're just teasing me," Aerith pouted. "Don't mind the lady and eat. It's good!"

Cloud rolled his eyes, but he nonetheless heeded her words as he took his first bite. As they ate their tacos, the two laughed at the many times Aerith spilled the contents of her overfilled-taco. She said something about getting the most out of her meal, but Cloud suggested she just get the meat and ditch the taco shell since it "didn't make a difference." This earned him another round of pouts and silly glares, but he was never on the hook for long with the way Aerith would burst into smiles, causing him to unintentionally crack a small one in return.

"You feeling okay?" Cloud asked once they left the restaurant and greeted the sun once more.

Giving him a look, she raised an eyebrow before saying, "Yeah, I am. Why you asking?"

"I'm really used to Jessie or Barret barfing in my car," he said. "So I've supplied it with some bags if you need one."

"I'm not going to throw up. You're an actual jerk," Aerith playfully shoved him by the shoulder as they walked back to his car. "Are you trying to call me fat?"

"Hold on, we're jumping the gun here. That is _not_ what I was implying," Cloud scoffed with an eye roll. "I'm just saying that the amount you ate warrants a cautionary paper bag."

"Right. Anyway," Aerith stopped by the rear of his car. He gave her a curious look and let his hand fall from the handle of his car when she showed no signs of going back into it.

"Anyway," he repeated hesitantly.

"We're not just going home yet, are we?" Aerith said playfully. "That's no fun!"

"… What's the schedule?" Because, of course, he didn't have one.

Aerith gave him a borderline-morbid look before she stretched her arms out, did a silly twirl, and sighed dreamily as she clasped her hands together against her face. "It's a beautiful day out, it's the weekend, and we're literally in downtown right now."

"… The point?"

Defiantly folding her arms across her chest, Aerith didn't look too amused with the way he seemed completely oblivious despite the obvious hints. He felt a bit attacked with the scrutinizing gaze she set on him, but he didn't get the chance to question it before Aerith skipped over behind him and began pushing him.

"C'mon, we got a whole place to explore! I haven't had the chance to explore downtown since I was a freshman!"

"Whoa, I think the eagerness is getting to you," Cloud complained, catching his footing again as he fumbled for the key fob in his pocket and re-locked his car. "I personally don't think there's anything much in downtown, but sure, if you want."

"Now those are the words of someone who has been here often," Aerith stuck her tongue out. "But that's okay—you can show me around!"

Cloud began to wonder how it ended up like this. He had been intensely questioning Tifa through the phone two hours ago, and now, he found himself dragged by Aerith as the two of them walked down the streets of downtown. Cloud didn't think much of downtown; it was just the usual with the mobs of people, tight street intersections, and the delightful smell of smog mingling with the scent of grilled food that came from the food stands. It was ordinary—as ordinary as downtown could be—but there must've been something about it that made Aerith's green eyes shimmer and shine wherever they landed.

"There's so many people, is that normal?" Aerith asked innocently. She was turning her head left and right so frequently to catch all the sights that her braid confusingly tried to keep up with her movements. "Do events happen every week or something?"

"You're just experiencing a regular weekend down here," he informed her. "There's a lot of things to do here—too many things. I mean, this area's known for the shopping district."

It was a mistake to say that, for the moment the word "shopping" spilled out of his mouth, Aerith did a small hop of excitement, signaling his doom.

"Well then, let's go, let's go! I might not have the money, but I most definitely have the eyes for it!"

"Please, no," Cloud attempted to deny her, but all was in vain the moment Aerith skipped off, leaving him behind to eat the dust.

Shopping was never a pleasant thing for him. He did enjoy it once and while when he was the one buying stuff, but sadly, those were rare moments. It was usually him with Tifa, or him with Jessie, or him with _both_ —being a part-time pack donkey really broke a sweat—but the worst of it all was probably with Barret. At least in a shopping mall Cloud could potentially land his eye on something worthwhile; with Barret, he had to endure hours of browsing through collectors' shops for model guns and model airplanes and model _anything._ Barret was an enthusiast for that type of stuff, and while Cloud had nothing against him for it, he'd appreciate it a lot more if he didn't partake in the big man's shopping spree.

"Are you really enjoying this window shopping?" Cloud asked after a long moment of strolling past many shops down the sidewalk. Clothes, jewelry, toys, souvenirs—there wasn't anything they hadn't passed yet. "If you want to go in, it wouldn't hurt to take a look."

"Naw, I'm actually fine like this," Aerith giggled as her eyes lingered on a dress on display before they returned back to the cement at her feet. "If I were to go in, I think I'd be harder for me to resist! Perhaps another time when this baby is a little bit more loaded," and she gave her purse a comforting pat before she flashed Cloud a smile. "Plus, I think this is enough for me."

Cloud took in a sharp breath when he felt Aerith reach down and loosely lace her fingers with his. Heart gradually beginning to pick up the pace, he tried not to visibly react as he gave her a lazy eyebrow—a poor attempt to hide how jumbled his mind became within half a second.

"I think it's a little too much," he muttered in response. But he didn't pull away.

Seeing the shy reaction behind the cool façade, Aerith rolled her eyes before she tugged the blond down the street to view more of the amazing things she saw behind the glass windows. For the entire time, Cloud tried his utmost best not to get his hand all clammy as he loosely grasped onto hers. Thinking about it, he felt like an idiot—she had kissed him before. Now, he was getting all jumpy over some handholding? Surely, his mind wasn't at the right place.

"You know, I think I've done a lot of things I've always wanted to do just by meeting you, which is crazy since I only met you a few weeks ago," Aerith hummed. She didn't really look at the shops anymore as she leisurely strolled by his side past all the people who brushed shoulders with her. "Which is kind of sad to admit since this stuff seems like a norm for everyone else."

"The norm is subjective," he said shortly, not sure how to respond. "But what do you mean?"

Holding up a fist, Aerith began to count off her fingers. "Well, for one thing, I've never daringly stole a phone number before."

"Thought it was for the shoes," he sighed, remembering the way she just snatched his phone after she spilled her coffee on them. "I got a call from a party instead."

"Then there's that too," she raised up another finger. "Acting all crazy. But at least I got a late, midnight snack from it."

"Mhm."

"And a kiss."

"…"

"Then there's bowling," Aerith giggled, purposely skidding past the subject just for his sake. "I never hung out with such a big group before, but you guys sure were really friendly! I felt like I… fit in for a change, even though I met more than half of you for the first time there."

"Spare some time in the future then," Cloud managed a small, tight-lipped smile as he thought about the little free time she had in her schedule. "A day or something can't hurt you that bad."

"Mhm! Especially when I'm marking down the things in my bucket list so fast!"

"Bucket list?"

"Remember? Shopping, attending a night market, studying and pulling all-nighters with friends, going to a concert, and most surprisingly to you, sitting at a café with someone!" Aerith listed, making him remember their conversation in the car after their bowling night. "Just a few of the many things I want to do, especially before I graduate! And I think I already knocked one off today already too."

"I'm sorry to say, but I don't think this really counts as shopping," chuckled Cloud.

"Aw, that part's okay. The spirit is still there—I'll count it," Aerith winked. "Plus, I knocked another secret one off the list."

"Oh?"

"Not telling!"

And for the rest of the afternoon, the two of them explored the depths of downtown. Through a lot of persuasion from Cloud to actually enter a store—partly due to his reluctance to continue walking listlessly for so long—Aerith couldn't stop sifting through the things. Cloud noticed that she didn't really look at the clothes. Instead, she went for the miscellaneous things, such as crafted pens she probably would never use, templates for DIY notebooks, and stickers that would probably belong on a kindergarten class calendar. None of it really interested him, but he put up with it for her sake.

His interest did pique, however, when she entered a plant shop. She looked accustomed to it as she looked at the items with a hint of knowledge in her eyes.

"Gardening's your hobby?" Cloud asked.

"Mhm, despite how dingy my apartment looks, it has a pretty nice balcony—enough space for some green life," she answered, slight frown hovering over her forehead. "But being at a tourist area really does hike up the price—these kinds of seeds are not that expensive."

"What do you usually plant?" Cloud felt a bit awkward asking since he wasn't the type to really get to know a person through a Q&A, but it was the only thing that really kept their conversation going.

"I work at a flower café shop, what do you think?" Aerith rolled her eyes playfully. She slipped her hand in his again as she continued to lead him through the aisles. At this point, he had grown used to their connection, but every time it disconnected to reconnect, a familiar lump would always hop into his throat. "People say flowers don't really last that long, but if you know how to take care of them well, that wouldn't be a problem."

"Oh, so working at a flower shop isn't a coincidence."

"Eh, it was. I was looking for any part-time job, to be honest, so I'm grateful I get to work at a place I actually like."

"Yet you never sat down and had a coffee in it," Cloud stated blankly, not forgetting that fact from her bucket list. "That is the most ironic of the ironic."

"Kill a girl for not wanting to just 'sit down and have a coffee' at the very place she worked at for six hours," Aerith retorted, quoting the air with one hand. "It'd be better if it wasn't at my workplace!"

Cloud took a moment to think about it before he actually said it. Biting his bottom lip, he pulled at her hand to stop her travels through the aisles.

"Then want to go?"

Surprised, Aerith blinked at his invitation.

"Go where?" she dumbly blurted.

"… To a café. I'm kind of tired—I want to sit."

" _Pfft_." Covering her mouth with a hand, she hid her stifled laughter, irking the blond. He almost hiccupped when she reached a hand up and patted his cheek before saying, "How cute. Yes, let's go to a café—just to _sit._ "

With some short time to search up a decent place, the two of went to a café that was on the way back to the car. He was a bit nervous to just sit down and hang out because that would mean he had to talk his way through it once more.

Now that he thought about it, he wasn't one to really talk about himself. Nothing too stressful went through his mind too much—which he was grateful for—and he was always _that_ person—the person who just kind of lazed around and lent an ear to whoever needed it. This wasn't a secret either; from Zack to Tifa and Barret to Jessie, he always fed off the social energy from someone else.

With Aerith sitting in front of him with just them two, it definitely felt unsettling, especially since they weren't close enough to just relax entirely within each other's presence. Despite the way Aerith was very straightforward and quite _bold_ , he had a guess that not every nerve within her body was calm. He would awkwardly catch her staring from time to time during their walk, and every time he did, she would show him that smile of hers, all the while hiding the small blush that graced her features whenever she was caught red-handed. It truly was a wonder, what went through her head.

"So are you a caffeine addict?" he asked when they settled down to a table of two with their drinks. As always, he got something non-caffeinated, but instead of tea this time, he just got hot chocolate. From the smell that came from her cup, she ordered some sort of coffee.

"I actually am not," she hummed. "I like the taste—of course, of sweet coffee. Full on black is a no-no. Although _you_ seem like a caffeine addict."

"Your first impression of me is _very_ inaccurate." He rolled his eyes as he again recalled that terrible time in the library. "I only drink it during times of desperation. Otherwise, count me out."

"So do you like sweet things?'

"Guys can't like sweet things?"

"Never said that. Just didn't seem to suit your style."

"What kind of style are you even imagining?"

"Cool. Suave? Something like that," grinned Aerith. As a response, Cloud merely cringed. Before he could counter her terrible choice in adjectives, she continued, and he wished she had just left it at that. "But all of that is super wrong, by the way. I think you're one of the most awkward people I've ever met."

"Excuse me?" Cloud scoffed. " _Awkward._ "

"Look at you, you're barely keeping yourself from stuttering."

He could tell that the brunette was having fun teasing him with the way the ends of her mouth continued to curve upwards. If he was talking to one of his friends, he would've shut them down already, but there was something about the girl that made him hold himself back from spitting fire. Besides, every time he did back during the time when they first met, he somehow said something stupid to hurt her—it was safe to just keep his mouth closed right here.

"Like you're one to talk. You're the weirdest person I've ever met."

But he couldn't keep himself from saying that one.

"Wow," she stretched the syllable out as she shook her head mockingly. "I thought you could come up with something better now that we've reached this far." Then, she put her elbows onto the table and held her face in her hands, scooching closer towards him from across the table. "Can't you think of something better now that we're getting warm and cozy with each other?"

"Uh," Cloud straightened his back against the chair to give some unnoticeable distance between them as he blindly tried to grab some words in his brain. "I mean…"

"Just kidding, just kidding," Aerith sat back up as she waved a hand to dismiss it. Her smile didn't go away, but Cloud was able to detect the hint of disappointment in it. "Can't force things out of you, hm? Seems like I've been doing that kind of often. Sorry about that."

"It's okay," Cloud assured as he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. He wanted to say something more, but he just couldn't find the right thing to say. With the natural flow of events, it wasn't a surprise for his mind to revisit Zack again.

The first few times, it was all coincidental—his interactions with Aerith. Fate wanted to toy with him and see him struggle, but by the time her phone number first got handed to him on a platter, it was no longer just fate—it was him. Out of all the odd predicaments he found himself in, he had no one else to blame except for himself and his wishy-washy nature.

And now, as the mood between them slightly shifted towards a less natural atmosphere, Cloud knew he couldn't keep doing this.

_The truth._

_Vrr, vrr!_

"Cloud."

Aerith's sweet, concerned voice snapped him out of his little train wreck of a thought process as he blinked and gave her an inquisitive look. With a finger, she tapped at her own phone that sat on the table.

"Your phone's been kind of buzzing."

"Oh. Sorry, give me a sec."

"Got all the time in the world," Aerith smiled.

Turning away from her slightly, Cloud took out the phone in his pocket to see what was going on.

_Buddy, I'm so sorry about today. Kunsel got back on track, I think the barf in him is gone and so is the killer headache, but too bad it robbed me of this day._

_But no fear! Yo, if you met up with Aerith because of my late notice, I hope you guys didn't just call it. Hang out, you know, I like it when my friends get to know each other, especially you, Cloud._

_You're a hella awesome dude._

_And don't forget to think about yourself sometimes._

Cloud had to hard-blink at the last text bubble that Zack sent. Everything had been flowing well until the last message, and it struck him as odd with the way it stuck out of context. However, that was just a small concern.

_Yes, the truth._

Aerith watched curiously as Cloud typed out a response. He looked hesitant—even unsure—but it was interesting to see the way his expression morphed into one with decisiveness.

"If you need to get somewhere, we can just call it a day," Aerith assured. "It's almost evening anyway."

"No, it's fine," Cloud mumbled as he sighed and settled his phone onto the table. "Just something small."

 _It's okay,_ Cloud had texted back to Zack, _but this is the last time._

_I'm not going to wingman anymore for various reasons. Can we talk soon? It's about Aerith, if that's okay with you._

Hopefully, this fiasco was finally going to come to an end.

"Thanks for coming out with me today," Aerith said, bringing him back into their own world. "I was really excited today, and a part of me was scared that maybe something bad might happen, like me being an extreme clutz and, I don't know, _breaking_ something."

"Mhm, well I wouldn't be surprised."

"Gee, thanks." At this point, Aerith was getting immune to Cloud's little remarks, but she knew they were of no harm as she clutched at her drink with both hands. "But everything went well today. I had a lot of fun, and I got to know you a little bit more."

"… Same," Cloud finally managed to share her sentiment, even if it was just one word. "It was… nice."

It really was. And it was going to be better once all of these misunderstandings were finally going to be over.

Stretching her arms above her head, Aerith let out a small groan as she shook loose her limbs. Checking the time on her wristwatch, she nodded enthusiastically as she pointed to it. "Even though I said you could go home, I think it's late enough for us to both go home, hm? Today's been a blast though, let's do it again!"

"Yeah, we can go home," Cloud said as he cracked his neck a bit. "Just let me go to the bathroom and we can head out."

"Mhm. But one last thing."

"Yes?"

"When are you going to be my boyfriend?"

Cloud sharply sucked in a breath at the sudden question, but before he could even say anything—and he probably wasn't going to say anything intelligent—Aerith became his saving grace once again as she laughed and shook her head.

"You should know by now that I just throw these things out at you to get you a bit bothered. Don't mind it, but I do like your reaction though." And she stuck out her tongue teasingly.

"I'm going to the bathroom," he huffed, giving her a small, joking glare out of revenge before he went towards the bathroom.

Feeling quite satisfied that their day was a lot more enjoyable than he first thought it would be, it would've ended nicely too if he had just taken his phone with him instead of leaving it on the table.

When he came out, the last thing he expected was to see an upset Aerith waiting by the table, and she was no longer sitting as she stood and clutched at her now-lukewarm cup.

"Um, is something the ma—"

"Cloud, you're really hurting me here."

And his stomach instantly dropped at those words.

Frowning, he was completely lost as he watched the way Aerith looked everywhere but his eyes. It was as if she was too ashamed to even look at him.

"What?" was all he could muster as his mind quickly tried to piece the unknown pieces together. He didn't have to though as Aerith took his phone off the table and handed it back to him.

"I really wasn't trying to snoop because that's just not my thing," she laughed emptily. "But it was just vibrating and it lit up, and it just caught my eye, and I just _had_ to see my name pop up, but it would've been better if I just stood still and didn't instinctively sneek a peek because _now_ —"

"Hold on, let me try to understand here," Cloud interrupted her. She was getting flustered with her sentences, and he knew.

"I'm not going to _wait_ for you to just look me in the face after. Sorry, I'm not—I'm going to be okay getting back home, you don't have to drive me back."

"Aerith—" Cloud grabbed onto her wrist to stop her from leaving, but she simply ripped out of his hold, reshouldered her purse, and stomped out of the café. He took this brief moment to look at his phone notifications to see what riled her up, only to pinch his eyebrows together in great agitation.

_About Aerith? Yeah, sure, I'm down to talk whenever! I hope it's not anything too bad._

_Again, I'm sorry about the double date today. It must've been kinda awkward asking her out for my sake, so I'll make it up to you next week! How does a meal at Cid's sound like? Of course, I'll pay :)_

The moment he understood what the entire misunderstanding was about, he instantly rushed out the café to follow Aerith, leaving his drink behind on the table.

The last thing he expected to see the moment he took a step out the door was Zack and Tifa just standing side-by-side next to the entrance.

"Yo, Cloud, what's going on with Aerith? Is she okay?" Zack exclaimed the moment his eyes landed on the blond. "She looks hella mad!"

"What the fu— _Zack_? _Tifa?_ " Cloud stopped in his tracks, completely lost in stupor as his sapphire eyes scanned the worried looks on their faces. Making sure he wasn't mistaking them for two different people, he frowned immensely as he basked in their sudden arrival. "What the hell are you guys doing here?"

"That's not the point," Tifa hurriedly tried to dismiss. "Aerith just turned right on the intersection, I think you should catch up to her before she goes too far."

"Not the point?" Mind split between dealing with Aerith and dealing with the two in front of him, Cloud ran an irritated hand through his hair as he tried to understand what exactly was going on. "I'm so confused right now. How did you guys know we were here, and how—"

Then, it clicked.

He had been set up.

"We can explain lat—"

"Oh, you _better_ explain," he said exasperatedly, feeling both the urgency to catch up to Aerith and the urge to strangle both of his friends. "Or else you're not leaving my apartment tonight. I'll deal with you two later."

And he left to chase after Aerith.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *dodges the angry frying pan* i'm sorry for this cliffhanger, but find out what happens in the next update! HAHA


End file.
